Fine Lines
by DC World
Summary: My version of what happened the two weeks Ms.T's class was married to one other - there is a fine line between fiction and reality. What happens when London and Zack suddenly find they have crossed it? Major Lock. Currently re-uploading to rid it of typos
1. Chapter 1

**Lock ( London/Zack) is really starting to grow on me, and I realized that there is a limited amount of stories involving this couple, so I am writing one. This is my version of what happened over the two weeks Ms.T's class was assigned to be married to one other. There are bits and pieces that follow the actual episode Marriage 101 - like the beginning- but for the most part it will be different and more detailed. Each chapter will represent a day. Of course, major spoilers for Marriage 101, so if you haven't watched it yet, and you don't want to be spoiled, don't read this. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own TSL. If I did I would never have put it on Disney. I probably would have tried to get it on CBC ( oh wait, it's an American show, so it's ABC) so that the characters could have room to grow into emotionally stable adults and experiences real teenage problems. **

**Not the most descriptive or best written story of mine, but it has some witty one-liners and quirks, so it makes me happy. **

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**Monday, October 4th****, 2010 - Day 1**

" Woody, why are you on the floor?" Emma Tutweiller asked curiously as she walked into her Social Studies classroom and noticed her student on the floor. The fact that he was lying there didn't really faze her - she had long since learned to expect the unexpected from her class. She was just interested to see what kind of response he would come up with.

" He's looking for his pride," Zack Martin replied with a charming smirk. Ms. Tutweiller nodded. Of course Zack would make some smart ass comment.

Woody began to dig in his pockets and then shook his curl covered head vigorously . " Nope, it's not here." He t sat up slightly and looked around, an enthusiastic smile forming on his lips. " Oh, look a piece of gum." Picking the piece of gum off the underside of the desk, he placed it in his mouth before pushing himself off the floor and finding his seat.

_Someone needs to teach that kid proper etiquette_. Ms. Tuweiller shook her head at Woody's behaviour and then addressed her class. " Okay, over the next two weeks we are going to do something a little bit different in Social Studies class."

" You're going to sit in one of these chairs while we bore you to death?" London Tipton piped up from her desk in the front row. Trust the hotel heiress to come up with something forthright like that. Beating around the bush was not one of her fortes.

Ms. Tuweiller glanced down at her wrist watch and sighed. " 9:02 and I'm already sad." She waved her hand dismissively and continued her lesson. " Actually, you're going to be doing a project that it worth 50% of your grade. But don't worry you'll be working with partners."

At once Woody, London and Zack jumped out of their seats and rushed over to corner of the room where Zack's twin, Cody, was sitting. " I PICK CODY," they all yelled at same time, grabbing a hold of his arm.

Ms. Tutweiller shook her head and their outburst. She should have expected her three worst students to all fight over her best. But she knew that as soon as they heard what the project was about, they would no longer want to be his partner. " The two of you will become a married couple."

As predicted Woody, London and Zack let go of Cody's arm and collectively shuddered.

Cody glance up at everyone and frowned slightly. " What? No one wants to marry me?"

Ms. Tutweiller glance at him with a saddened expression. " You get used to it." But as she said this she looked over at Cody's girlfriend Bailey Pickett and knew that while no one wanted her marry her, somebody was apparently excited about marrying him.

Cody must have picked up on this too because he rushed out his seat and over to Bailey. As soon as he reached her desk she stood up. When they began to talk, they spoke at the same time.

" Will you marry me?"

" Of course I will."

" You've made me the most happiest person in the world."

Ms. Tutweiller could not help but smile. She had never seen a couple that was as perfect for each other as the two of them. She turned away from Cody and Bailey and looked around the room to see how other couples were going about " asking for each other's hand in marriage."

Woody got out of his chair and walked over to Addison Cartwright - the borderline Attention Deficit brunette was bouncing on the balls of her feet. He got down on one knee and pulled out a cherry ring pop. " Addison, will you be my wife?"

She squealed in delight as she snatched the ring from his hand. " Wow, it's gorgeous," she took a lick, " and delicious. Oh, I better call my family and tell them the news. My sister is going to be soooooo jealous. She has been looking for Mr. Right since kindergarten. She's only in the third grade now." And before Woody could even respond Addison skipped off to go tell her family about her " marriage."

Woody just stared after her, baffled by the response he had just received. " Was that a yes?"

From beside him, Bailey shook her head as she pondered this. " I don't know. All I heard was a buzz."

Ms. Tutweiller chuckled softly. That was going to be an unique couple. And poor Woody, it was highly unlikely that he was going to have a say in what happened over the next two weeks.

She then turned her attention to London, who was still sitting in her desk. Perched on the desk behind her was Zack. She could practically see the wheels in his head turning. He was up to something and she wasn't really sure she wanted to know what. She leaned in closer to listen to what he had to say.

" London, I'm not really into the whole marriage thing. But what say you become my sugar mama and I'll tell you that you are the smartest girl I know."

London let out a small gasp. " You would lie for me?" She paused for a second as she thought this deal over for a second. " What about you carrying my bags and going shopping with me ?"

Zack contemplated this for a moment and then slowly nodded. " I don't see why not. As long as I get my sugar." He winked at her.

London was taken aback for a second. Was he flirting with her? Zack never flirted with her. Why the sudden change? She shrugged her shoulders. He was probably just getting into character for this assignment. She flashed him a grin. " Why of course, sweetie."

Zack grinned back.

Ms. Tutweiller couldn't help but mull over their agreement for a second. It sounded more like a business proposal then a pretend marriage proposal. It looked like they had a sort of " you scratch my back and I'll scratch yours" kind of deal going on. Not the most conventional way to look at marriage, but a way that could most definitely work. Especially between the two of them. She turned her attention back to her class. " Now, more than half of marriages…"

" What do you know about marriage?" London suddenly asked in a almost callous way. " Have you ever been married?"

" Well, no…."

" Has anyone ever proposed to you?" she continued.

" Actually, I'll have you know…."

" When's the last time you were even on a date?"

Ms. Tutweiller threw her hands up in frustration. " Stop it, stop it, stop it ."

The whole class raised their eyebrows.

She cleared her throat. " Anyways, as I was saying, more then half of marriages in the US end up in the divorce. The other half limp along in uncomfortable silence.

Everyone in the class just stared at her.

" That's because nobody seems to know how to live with another person or how to compromise."

" Pfft," London waved her hand dismissively. " My daddy is great at marriage. He's done it 14 times."

Ms. Tutweiller gave her a quizzical look. " Okay then, moving on. I want everyone to come and pick a career out this jar." She grabbed a clear container from off of her desk. " Who wants to go first?"

London raised her hand enthusiastically. " We do, we do."

" All right. London, Zack come on up here and pick a job." Zack and London rushed up to the front of the class." Zack, why don't you go first."

Zack put his hand in to the container and pulled out a small piece of paper. He glance at it curiously for a moment before reading it out loud. " Hmmm…psychologist. That's…interesting."

" More like slightly scary," Ms. Tutweiller gave him a apprehensive look, causing the teen to smirk.

" Now, Ms.T, if Mr. Blanket can be a licensed mental health professional, I don't see why I can't."

Cody raised an eyebrow at his brother. " Mr. Blanket's method of practice are uncontroversial at best. He _did _force me to dress up like a giant banana to cure your illegitimate phobia."

" True," Zack flashed him a smile, " but you have to admit it was kind of funny. Plus hitting you with pillows was tons of fun."

Cody scowled. " Fun is not the word I would use to describe the occasion. And besides, didn't he once hand cuff you to Moseby? Was something you would call fun?"

Zack frowned slightly. Being hand cuffed to Moseby had indeed not been what he would call fun. " Okay, I admit sometimes the man's ideas and actions can have a less then desired effect on people…."

Ms. Tutweiller let out huff. " Less then desired effect? That man just plain out gives me the creeps."

" Oh come on, Ms.T," Bailey said optimistically, " he can't be that bad."

" The man keeps a puppet of me in his closet. And periodically he takes it out and kisses it." She shuddered at the mere thought.

Bailey shook herself in disgust . " Okay, that is kind of creepy."

London shook her head, slightly confused. " I don't get. First you complain about how men never pay you any attention, and then when a guy is obsessed with you, you call him a creep. You should just make up your mind."

Ms. Tutweiller narrowed her eyes and glared at the heiress, but she didn't say anything. London was just being…well London. " London, why don't you come and pick a piece of paper out of the jar, okay?"

London nodded enthusiastically as she stuck her hand in the jar. Pulling out the paper, she frowned as she tried to read what it said. " Who's Brian Sirgon?"

Ms. Tutweiller let out a nervous laugh. Then she frowned slightly, kind of saddened by London's question. She knew that London was not as dumb as she acted. Deep down she was very lonely and only acted this way to get attention. She just wished that someday soon the young women would open her eyes and realized that she already had everyone's attention. And that many people including Mr. Moesby, the Martin twins and - if Ms. Tutweiller was being truthful - herself, cared very much for the slightly ditzy raven haired girl. But at the moment Ms. Tutweiller, found the direction this assignment seemed to heading slightly odd and uncomfortable. " That says brain surgeon. And even though this is pretend, that makes me more nervous then Zack giving people advice on their mental health." She took the paper from London and ripped it in two. " Why don't you be a house wife?"

" Can I be a mansion wife?"

" Sure why not."

She then passed the bucket to Woody who ( much to his delight and Addison's dismay) picked hotdog salesman. Addison picked a Teacher.

Finally Ms. Tutweiller turned to her last and most promising couple, Cody and Bailey. Cody eagerly put his hand in the jar, muttering as he did so. " Please pick doctor lawyer in space. Please pick doctor lawyer in space."

Ms. Tutweiller eyes him suspiciously. " Cody, I don't think there is such a job as a doctor lawyer in space."

" Oh, I know. I'm going to be the first one."

Ms. Tutweiller had to admit she admired his enthusiasm. Still, that was odd choice of dream job.

Cody pulled out the paper, a disgruntled look forming on his face as soon as he read what it said. " You have got to be kidding me! Sanitation Engineer. Is this some kind of weird twist of fate?" This was the second time this job and been " recommend" for Cody. The first time being when he did an aptitude test when he was 13.

" Hey, you get to be an Engineer. That's right up your alley, isn't it?" Zack replied, trying to be somewhat encouraging.

Cody rolled his eyes at his brother and then let out a sigh. Having to explain things to his somewhat dim-witted sibling was often tiresome. " Sanitation Engineer is a euphemism for Garbage Man."

Zack burst into laughter then he sobered up as soon as something dawned on him. "Wait, you get to drive a truck…that crushes things? All I get to do is listen to people complain about their problems. Lucky."

Woody nodded in agreement. Cody just rolled his eyes, but didn't respond.

Bailey patted his arm sympathetically. " You could always quit your job."

Cody shook his head. He was not one to quit, even if the job was make believe. "Nah. I'll live, for now. Let's see what you're doing with your life, sweetie. Hopefully something that makes a little bit more money."

Bailey smiled at him. She knew that picking that job really bothered him, but she was glad that he was being mature about it. She just hoped that she didn't pick a job he wanted. She knew that Cody could sometimes be a little whiney and that might push him in that direction.

She took a deep breath and pulled out the paper. Slowly she opened it and inwardly cursed. She just had to jinks it. " Um…" she cleared her throat, " I got Gourmet Chef." She gave her boyfriend a empathetic look. She knew that besides studying science, cooking and baking was Cody's life.

" What?" Cody snapped, just as Bailey predicted he might.

Zack let out a low whistle. " Ladies and Gentlemen, this just became a little bit more fun-tertaining."

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**Okay, so I know this chapter ( and probably the next couple of chapters too) have a light more comical and episody ( huh….I think I just made up a word….anyways) feel. But I think that it will start to get more serious and deep once Zack and London start to take this assignment - and essentially their relationship- a bit more seriously. **

**Oh and for those of you who are reading my story Blissfully Pathetic and are anxiously awaiting chapter 4, me and Bliss are going through a little rough patch in our relationship. But don't worry I am not abandoning it, just trying to work out some kinks. **


	2. Chapter 2

**Since the amazing Phil Lewis doesn't make an actual appearance in the episode Marriage 101, I thought I might as well give him a brief cameo in my story. Also Marcus is not in this story. I find his character rather boring and hard to write. **

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**Tuesday, October 5****th****, 2010 - Day 2**

" Oh come on Woody," Addison let out a sigh as she watched her "husband" push a hotdog stand around the Sky Deck. Where he got this hotdog stand was a mystery to her and pretty much everyone else on the ship. " I know you love your job and all, but seriously do you have work? I mean we are technically on our honeymoon and you really should be spending your time with me, your wife, because that's what people do on their honeymoons, they spend time with their newly found sp-"

Addison was cut off when Woody shoved a hotdog in her mouth. For a moment she looked like she might yell at him, but instead she just took a bite and swallowed. Then she let out an annoyed sigh. " I was talking too much, wasn't I? I am so sorry Woody, it's just sometimes I can't help it, you know. It's like my brain just won't shut off. "

" Addison." Woody stared at her.

" Huh?" She glanced around for a moment and then let out a gasp when she finally understood why he was giving her a funny look. " Oh, oops. Sorry" She took another bite of her hotdog to prevent herself for talking even more.

Meanwhile Bailey was sitting on a stool at the Easy Squeezy consoling Cody, who was sitting beside her. " Don't worry my Cody-wody." She patted him on the arm. " It's just pretend. I would never become a Chef just to spite you."

" Yeah," Cody took a sip of his drink, " I know."

She pulled him into a hug.

" Don't worry Cody-wody," Zack mocked from behind the counter. He rolled his eyes. His brother was being a whiney baby. Plain and simple. And Bailey needed to stop treating him like one. He grabbed a rag from underneath the counter and began to wipe up around the mixing machine.

" Hey there husband."

Zack looked up from his work and smiled. He had to admit that he was actually looking forward to working with London on this project. The heiress had a way of putting a smile on people's faces, even when they were annoyed at her. She always made things fun and entertaining

" Whatca doing?"

Zack let out a exaggerated sigh. " Working." He was beginning to regret maxing out his and Cody's cash cards in the first week of being on the ship. It was taking quite a long time to make that money up.

" Pfft," London waved her hand in a dismissive fashion, like she often did when things that might concern most people didn't seem to apply to her. " My husband doesn't work. You are coming with me. "

Zack rolled his eyes slightly. Although this might make prefect sense to London, it was not practical. " London, as much as I would love to skip work and hang out with you instead, I kind of need this job."

It was London's turn to roll her eyes. " Hello, my daddy owns the ship. If I say you can skip work, you can."

He could not argue with that. He threw down his towel and gestured for Mike - another student who worked at the juice bar- to take over for him. Then he walked around the bar and linked arms with London. " And where are we going this fine evening, my lovely wife?"

" First things first, we're going clothes shopping. I can not have a husband that dresses like this," she said as she looked over his current attire.

" This is my work uniform. I don't normally wear it when I am not working." He pointed out.

She nodded. " I know. But I've seen what you normally wear, and trust me, it's not much better."

Zack frowned slightly. He didn't see anything wrong with the way he dressed.

" Anyways," London continued, " what sizes are you?"

Zack mulled this over for a second. " Uh…I think I take a 28 in pants, a 36 in jackets and shirts, and oh and I'll take a 65 inch tv."

London nodded. " I can do that."

Zack grinned sheepishly. Yes, being married to London was mostly definitely going to be fun.

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Later on that afternoon all the students filed into Ms. Tutweiller's classroom. Cody and Bailey were dressed in matching Hawaiian outfits and had smiles plastered on their faces. It looked like they were taking this mushy- mushy, lovey-dovey, newly wed couple thing a little to seriously. It also appeared that Bailey's coddling had drastically improved Cody's bitter mood.

Behind them rushed in Addison with Woody on her tail. It appeared that he was having a hard time adjusting to Addison energetic personality. But he also - oddly- had a smile on his face. Something must be going right.

Last to enter the classroom was London and Zack. Arms linked, they strutted through the door as if they owned the place and paused just inside the doorway as if they were half expecting people to take pictures of them. London looked rather lavish in her pink knee length dress and Zack actually looked like he belonged there beside her in his white blazer, black dress pants and black t-shirt. The only thing missing was a pair of cool aviators.

A girl from back of the class let out a wolf call. " Take it off, you sexy beast."

From behind her desk Ms. Tutweiller raised an eyebrow. But as she looked over her student she had to admit he did clean up quite nicely.

Zack gave the class a devilishly handsome smirk. " Sorry ladies. I'm afraid I'm already taken."

" Yeah, get your own trophy husband," London added when half the girls in the class let out a disappointed sigh.

Zack chuckled slightly. "I'm a trophy husband."

They went and took their seats as the bell rang.

" Now," Ms. Tutweiller began, " I trust the honeymoon phase went well."

The classroom began to buzz as everyone began to talk at once. Zack's voice rung out above the crowd as he stated that he quite liked the idea of being a trophy husband.

Ms. Tutweiller raised her hand to silence her class. " One at time now. Woody and Addison, what did you do on your honeymoon?'

" Well," Addison began. Everyone braced themselves for a long speech. " It wasn't really what I would call a honeymoon. I spent the whole time watching Woody stuff his face with hotdogs and nachos and all kinds of unhealthy food. And then we watched re-runs of The Simpsons and Robot Chicken. I mean if were had to watch TV we should have watched something with a little bit more entertainment value, like Criminal Minds or House or Fringe. I LOVE that show! "

Woody sighed contently. " I had a great time."

Ms. Tutweiller nodded slowly. " Interesting. How about you Cody and Bailey?"

Bailey smiled. " Well, Cody decided that since I was pretending to be a Chef he would teach some actual recipes. We made ourselves a four course dinner and ate in under the stars. It was romantic."

" Aw, how sweet," Ms. Tutweiller replied with a content sigh. Then she turned to London and Zack. " And what about you two? What did you do for your honeymoon?"

" Nothing," they replied at the same time.

Ms. Tutweiller was about to ask them to elaborate, but stopped herself at the last moment. She wasn't sure she wanted more details. " Okay class, today we are-"

There was a knock on the door and in walked Mr. Moesby. " Ah, Emma I am so sorry to disturb your class. But I have an issue with a couple of your students."

" I see. Go on." She had a sneaky suspicion that the students he had a problem with also were the ones that did " nothing" on their honeymoon.

" Well, it appears somebody thought that being on a fake honeymoon somehow gave them permission to gain access to my honeymoon suite. Let's just say that Mr. & Mrs. Henderson were not to please to find their room already occupied when they came back from dinner last night."

Ms. Tutweiller turned and gave Zack a stern look . " Zack, how could you crash a real honeymoon?"

" Hey, why are looking a me? It could have been anyone." There was a pause as she continued to give him a dirty look. " Fine, it was me." He let out a sigh. " But just for the record I didn't know someone had booked the room before I stole the key. I swear. If I did I never would have done that." He suddenly gave Mr. Moseby and then his brother a smirk. " I just wanted the night to be prefect for my _Londy- wondy_."

Cody scowled. He knew that Zack was making fun of the fact that he and Bailey had pet names for each other.

Mr. Moesby narrowed his eyes and pointed from London to Zack. " You know, London, I really don't approve of you being married to this hooligan."

London let out a gasp. " Moseby. How dare you disprove. Zack and I have a great relationship. One that is based on…based on…"

" ….our appreciation for the finer things in life." Zack concluded for her.

London nodded. " Yeah, what he said."

Moseby glanced from one teen to the other. " Well, good luck with that." Then he pointed his fingers at his eyes and then at Zack. " I'm watching you." And with that he turned on his heals and left the classroom.

Ms. Tutweiller once again addressed her class." Okay, moving on. Today you are all going to spin the wheel of life." She pointed to a giant wheel that was set up beside her desk. " Now, depending on what you land on, the dynamics of your relationship are either going to change in a positive way or a negative one. Woody and Addison would you like to spin first?" She noticed that Addison leg was starting to bounce up and down and that she was getting antsy. Getting up and moving about would probably do her some good.

Addison jumped out of her chair and rushed to the wheel " Oh, can I spin the wheel? I love to spin. Want to see?" She began to spin around but Ms. Tutweiller put a hand on her shoulder to stop her.

From his desk in the front row Cody piped up . " Somebody should get that girl some Ritalin."

" Oh," Zack began to dig in his bag on the floor, " just let my get my notepad and my handy-dandy clicky pen and I'll write her a prescription."

Cody turned around and gave his brother a quizzical look. "You're a psychologist, not a psychiatrist."

"And?"

Cody sighed. " You're not a doctor. You didn't go to medical school. You are not legally allowed to give people prescriptions."

Zack groaned. " Well, that sucks."

Ms. Tutweiller spoke up again. " Thanks for the clarification Cody, but why don't we all stop talking and let poor Addison spin the wheel before she goes stir crazy."

Addison grabbed a hold of the wheel and gave it big spin. It landed on " Career Change."

Ms. Tutweiller took a card off the wheel and flipped it over. " Oh, it looks like Woody is getting a new job."

" Damn it," Woody groaned. " I really like my job. Can I at least keep the hotdog stand?"

Ms. Tutweiller sigh. " Sure, why not."

" YES!"

" Okay, anyways," Ms. Tutweiller began to read off the card. " It appears that you quit your job to pursue your life long dream of becoming the lead singer in a punk rock band." She scrunched up her face. This assignment seemed to be getting more outlandish by the minute.

" Lucky," Zack called up from the back. " So jealous."

London turned around to face him. " How can you be jealous? You're married London Tipton. I could buy you a punk rock band, if you really wanted one."

" Really?"

London rolled her eyes at him. " Duh."

" Could you buy me Woody's band?"

" Of course. But I'm not sure that's such a good investment. Have you heard Woody sing?"

Zack pointed a finger at her. " Good point honey." He had indeed heard Woody sing and it wasn't pretty.

Ms. Tutweiller cleared her throat. " Well, since the two of you seem to be so engaged in this assignment, why don't you come up here and spin the wheel."

London jumped up from her seat and rushed to the wheel. Zack quickly followed suit. " Okay, sweetie, big money. Come on, big money."

London grabbed hold of the wheel and gave it a spin. When it stopped she put up her hand and waved it enthusiastically. " Oohhh, can I have W please?"

Zack and Ms. Tutweiller gave her matching enquiring looks. " Uh, London," Ms. Tutweiller began.

" Uh huh?"

" This is not Wheel of Fortune."

The heiress frowned slightly. " Oh…." But her frown turned into a smile as soon as she saw what she had landed on. " I got money. I love money. Yay me!"

Ms. Tutweiller glanced at the pair, slightly perplexed. London and Zack getting money. Go figures. She pulled the card off the board. " Well…uh…it appears the two of you have won $25,000 in a local lottery."

London shook her head, confused. " I thought this wheel was supposed to dramatically change our lives. I'm carrying more money then that in my purse right now."

Woody eyed her purse eagerly, but she turned to glare at him. " Don't even think about it."

He crossed his arms over his chest and pouted.

London turned back to Ms. Tuweiller. " I mean, come on, I sold Zack's crappy sneeze art for more money then that."

" Which you went and spent on an outfit that you only wore once," Zack pointed out.

She rolled her eyes. How many times did she have to explains this. " London Tipton never wears an outfit more then once. And neither does her trophy husband."

" Hey," Zack protested, " I quite like this jacket."

" You can discuss your problems later, okay?" Ms. Tutweiller knew that if she didn't put an end to this conversation now, it had the potential to go on for hours. " Why don't we see what happens Cody and Bailey."

Zack and London went back to their seats and Cody and Bailey walked up to the front hand in hand.

They spun the wheel at the same time. Everyone one in the class let out a small gasp when it landed on injury.

" Oh no," Ms. Tutweiller began, " It appears that Cody broke both of his legs on the job and is now bed ridden."

"How did he do that?" Zack asked. " Fall off the back of his garbage truck?"

London lightly smacked him on the arm. " Good one."

Cody and Bailey turned to glare at their " in-laws". Could this assignment get any worse?


	3. Chapter 3

**Wednesday, October 6****th****, 2010- Day 3 **

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" I don't see why I have to do everything for you?" Bailey let out a sigh as she handed Cody his Chemistry textbook that was sitting on his desk. " You didn't really break your legs, you know."

" But how are you going to fully understand what it's like to be married to someone who is bed ridden if I walk about?" Cody pointed out as he sat up and placed his book on one of those tables used by patients in the hospital. " I mean, you might as well be thankful you're with a partner who is willing to go the extra mile and make this assignment as realistic as possible. Could you grab me a pen?"

Bailey glared at him for a second and then got up to get his pen. This was only the 3rd day and already she was starting to dislike this assignment. She really hoped that things went up hill from here.

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" Just get out of the chair," Bailey hissed as she tried to push Cody's wheelchair in-between a row of desks. She was quite thankful that Cody liked to get to class early and that they were the firsts one here. She was not in the mood to be embarrassed by his behaviour.

" Ah, if I was really in a wheel chair, would you tell me get up?"

" Well….no.."

" Well, then move the desks out of the way and carry me to my seat. Okay honey?"

She scowled slightly, but did what she was told.

Moments later Ms. Tutweiller came into the classroom. " Good afternoon Cody, Bailey."

" Good afternoon," Cody replied.

Ms. Tutweiller glanced at the wheelchair beside his desk and the bandages around his legs. " Good, at least somebody is taking this assignment seriously."

" A little to seriously, if you asked me," Bailey mumbled under her breath.

Ms. Tutweiller was about to ask her what she meant by that, but she was stopped by the sound of the bell ringing and the rest of her class filing in.

As always, London and Zack were last to arrived. And like the day before, they made a big show out of it.

Zack pulled out London's chair for her and she flashed him a smile. Then she dug into her purse and pulled out a wad of cash. " Thanks sweetie."

He grinned back at her, taking the money. " By the way, might I add that you are looking rather gorgeous today." He then pointed to his cheek, indicating he wanted a kiss.

London playfully rolled her eyes. Although at first Zack's sudden flirting with her had been confusing, she now thought it was rather endearing and even found herself playing along with his flirtatious games. She leaned up and pecked him on the cheek.

He then walked over to the back of the class and took his seat, still grinning like an idiot. This was the most fun he had ever had in school. And he had to admit, being married to and flirting with London was not as complicated as he thought it might be. Everything just seemed to flow naturally.

Cody made a gagging sound and then raised his arm in the air. " Ms. Tutweiller?"

" Yes, Cody?"

" I don't think London and Zack are getting the whole concept of this assignment. She is just bribing him so he will say she is beautiful. There's no compromising, no giving and taking going on."

Bailey let out a huff. What a hypocrite. How could he accuse his brother of not compromising when he sat in bed all day and demanded that she do everything?

Zack protested. " Clearly, London gave me money and I took it. Give and take."

Ms. Tutweiller rolled her eyes. Although she did find the twins rather amusing sometimes - and Cody was generally a pleasure to have in class- they could sometimes get a little carried away. " Cody, although London and Zack aren't acting like the conventional couple, what they are doing seems to work for them. And they are actually coming to class and participating, so let's just leave them be, shall we?"

Cody grumbled but nodded.

Ms. Tutweiller continued. " Today we are going - "

" Ms. T?"

She sighed. " What Zack?"

" I decided to quit my job."

She raised her eyebrow at him. That wasn't really supposed to happen. Generally speaking the student was supposed to keep their job, unless they had picked the " Career Change" like Woody had. " Um, why?"

" Well," he began, " listening to people's problems is not really my forte. Plus, once I found out that I can't give out meds, the job kind of lost it's appeal."

" Okay, and what do you intend to do instead?"

He gave her his trade mark smirk. " I've decided to devote myself to becoming a full time trophy husband."

Cody groaned. But London clapped her hands together in a way that only London could. " That's my…." she racked her brain for a pet name for him," …Zackums."

Zack cleared his throat and shook his head. " We're going to have to work on that one."

She nodded in agreement.

Ms. Tutweiller sighed. She had a feeling that she was going to be interrupted quite often over the next two weeks. " Right, on to today's lesson. Today we are going to be doing a month long budget for your households. And you'll have to adjust these accordingly throughout this assignment. Now Bailey, seeing as your spouse is currently unable to work you will only have your income to work with. Keep in mind that he will also have medical expenses. And Addison and Woody you will have to keep Woody's band running. So do some research on what it will cost to get all the equipment you need and rent spaces for gigs." She then turned to London and Zack. " And…well, considering that you just quit your job Zack, your household actually doesn't have an income. But, once again, that doesn't really effect you guys much, does it?"

" Apparently not," Zack replied.

" Hmmm…let's see." She nodded once she thought of a way to still get them to do this part of the assignment - seeing as doing a budget was completely pointless when you had an almost endless supply of money. " I want the two of you to keep track of all your spending over the next two weeks. London, this also means every time you bribe somebody, including your husband."

London raised her eyebrows. " That might take a while. And a lot of paper."

" Well then, you better get busy."

* * *

" Hold on, I'm coming," Zack yelled as he pressed pause on his video game, tossed the controller on his bed and walked over to his cabin door . He opened it and was surprised to see London standing on the other side. She didn't often venture into the part of the ship that housed the boy's rooms. " Hi…uh…come in?"

She walked past him and he shut the door. " So…are you working on that budget thingy for Ms. T's class?" He was still slightly confused as to what she was doing here. This just seemed like the most logically question to ask.

She shook her head. " No, I hired an accountant to take care of it."

"You do know that you'll have to add what you paid them to your list of things you spent money on, right?"

She mulled this over for a second. " Remind of that later, okay."

" Uh, sure." He paused for a moment. " London, not that I don't mind you dropping by, but what are you doing here?"

" Oh, I thought we'd hang out," she replied in tone that suggested that this happened all the time.

_That's kind of odd. Why would she do that? _Zack glanced at her for a second, slightly confused.

Almost as if she could read his mind she continued. " Normally I would just hang out in my room and paint my nails or pretend to listen to Bailey go on about farming or what she learnt in Physics class. But Cody's in there forcing her to watch some stupid video on how to properly fold socks."

" Really? That's odd, even for Cody."

She nodded in agreement. " Yeah I know. " She shrugged her shoulders at Cody's behaviour . " So what are you doing?"

He gestured to his game console. " I was playing Call of Duty 4. But, I don't think it's your kind of game."

" Well, how do you know?" She asked as she walked over to his small tv.

He shrugged his shoulders. In all honesty he had no idea if London liked video games about warfare. He grabbed the remote from off the bed and pressed play. Instantly a stimulated stealth mission began to play out on the screen as he continued to play.

London shook her head as soon as she saw what the game was about. " You're right. Definitely not my thing. Now, if there was a game were you went shopping then I might be all for it. But this battle stuff, it just doesn't interest me."

Zack chuckled slightly and paused the game again. He then glanced at his watch. It was only 6:30. " Fine we won't play video games." Suddenly his stomach growled and he was reminded that he hadn't eaten since lunch. " Hey, would you like to grab a bite to eat?"

She nodded. " Yeah sure."

He grabbed his jacket - a quick glance out of the port hole in his room told him that it was overcast outside and most likely slightly chilly- and then they both headed off towards on of the many restaurants on the ship.

* * *

" You know, Zack, I've been doing some thinking lately," London said after the waiter had left with their orders.

" About what?" He asked curiously. He had stopped himself from saying something along the lines of " did it hurt?" For some reason he got the feeling she was being serious and might actually have something semi-important to say.

" Your brother."

" What about him?" He was now starting to get really intrigued.

She shook her head. " Oh I don't know, it's just he's been acting strange lately. More moody and more mean. He just doesn't seem like the sweet nerdy boy that lived in the hotel."

Zack nodded slowly. He had noticed something similar. " Maybe he's just going through a phase," he suggested as he took a sip of his water.

" Perhaps, but I think it's deeper then that." Zack raised his eyebrows, somewhat baffled. Was London Tipton about to get all philosophical on him? " I think he's afraid."

" Of what exactly?"

" Well," she continued, " of everything really. You know, growing up, becoming independent, all that stuff. But mostly I think he is afraid of the relationship he has with Bailey. If you ask me, he's pushing her just to see how far she will go before she breaks. He wants to know if she is willing to stay with him through the thick and the thin. He wants to know if she feels the same about him as he does about her. I'm just not so sure he's going the right way about it."

Zack just stared at her for a moment. " Wow, London…that was rather insightful."

She smiled. " You know, I'm not actually as dumb as a post. " She shook her head as an after thought occurred to her. " Just as dumb as a doorknob."

Zack was dumbstruck. It all of the sudden made prefect sense to him. London was just as self conscious as everyone else her age. She was just better at hiding it. And he wasn't quite sure if he should laugh at her comment or tell her he didn't think she was " as dumb as a doorknob". So he opted to take a sip of his water instead.

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**So there you have it, Chapter 3. Next up, Couples Challenge **


	4. Chapter 4

**MoF, what you said about Cody response to the question " How many kids do you want?" made sense so I changed up the order for of the questions and it flows much nicer now, so thanks. **

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**Thursday, October 7****th****, 2010 - Day 4 **

" Okay, honey I finished all your laundry," Bailey said with a much cheerfulness as she could muster after spending a good hour and a half in the laundry room on the ship. She grabbed a sweater from the basket she had been carrying and placed in on a hanger. Walking over to her boyfriend's closet, she gave the boy lying on the bed an annoyed glare. He was most definitely taking the whole bed ridden thing a little to far.

" You did not just put my sweater on a hanger," Cody remarked snidely.

" Oh, I'm sorry sweetie. I'm doing my best." She let out a small sigh. That really was the truth, she was doing her best. But he didn't seem to notice or care. She walked back over to the basket to grab some more of his clothes.

" Uh, honey? Could you get me a little bit more juice?" Cody called, despite the fact that his juice was on the bedside table right beside him.

Without even turning around Bailey replied. " More? But you've already had quite a lot and I don't like where that is heading."

" Fine," Cody huffed, " I guess I could just get it myself." He shuffled his body to the end of the bed and then made a show out of attempting to reach the juice. " Must…drink….can't…reach"

Bailey rolled her eyes and let out a huge sigh. He was being so stupid. She was half tempted to just not get it for him, but she knew that he could be really stubborn and probably wouldn't stop complaining until she did what he asked. She grudgingly walked over and helped him sit up.

" It's funny how thirsty you seem to be when you haven't really done anything," Bailey said sarcastically as she poured some juice down his throat - placing a hand on his back to prevent him from falling backwards.

" I'm doing something," he replied, " I'm telling you how to do the laundry."

She let do of him and he flopped back onto the bed.

" Yeah," she said as she walked back towards the basket with his clothes, " I really enjoyed that sock folding video you forced me to watch last night."

There was a moment of pause before Cody piped up with another request. " Uh, I'm really kind of feeling cold. Could you grab me a blanket?"

" Sure thing sweetie," she replied sarcastically as she walked over to his bed and grabbed a blanket and covered him.

She turned to walk away, but didn't get very far before Cody raised his arms in the air. " Tuck me."

She turned back to stare at him. ' Tuck me', was he serious? She forced herself to put on a sweet smile and leaned over the bed to tuck the blanket around him. " Anything else?" she said in a malicious tone. " How about a foot rub while we're at it? Or a fresh shrimp cocktail?"

" That would nice."

" That would be nice," she mocked. With more force then necessary, she finished tucking the blanket around her boyfriend, starting to get more then annoyed with is attitude. If he was going to keep this up she was positive that this marriage wasn't going to work and that before the week was up she would probably end up asking Ms. T for a divorce.

" Ah, ah," he whined, " to tight tucking."

" Oh, let me fix that for ya." She gave him a fake grin before pulling the blanket out from underneath him, causing him to roll off the bed and onto the floor.

" You really should vacuum down here," he called from under the bed.

But his was comment was wasted, Bailey had already left the room.

* * *

" You didn't have to leave me lying there, you know," Cody hissed as Bailey pushed his wheelchair onto the Sky Deck. Earlier on this morning they had gotten an e-mail telling them to meet Ms. Tutweiller here instead of in the classroom.

Bailey scowled slightly, but didn't respond. She had given up trying to pretend that what he was doing was okay.

" Oh, hey there Cody and Bailey. How is your marriage going? Woody and I are doing okay, but sometimes it's a little bit annoying when he doesn't following along with what I am saying," Addison rambled as she and Woody approached the Easy Squeezy and their two classmates.

Before either Cody or Bailey could responded Ms. Tutweiller's voice boomed all around them. " Welcome to Couples Challenge everyone. I'm your host for the evening Emma Tutweiller."

The group of teenagers all shrugged their shoulders. They had no idea what was going on.

" Look," Woody said suddenly as he pointed to a make shift television game show set, " we're going to be on TV!" Both Cody and Bailey rolled their eyes, but didn't say anything.

" So, let's introduce tonight's couples, shall we." Ms. Tutweiller continued, "Couple number one. She enjoys eating colourful candies, talking really fast and spinning in circles. He is rather fond of anything to do with food and his " musical" talents. Please put your hands together for Woody and Addison."

"Hey," Woody yelled over the sound of the audience cheering and a cheesy game show theme song playing, " that's us."

Addison rolled her eyes. " Yes it is, now come on Woody, let's go." She grabbed his hand and pulled him towards the far couch.

" Okay," Ms. Tutweiller continued as they sat down, " couple number two. He enjoys studying chemistry, cooking gourmet meals and interrupting people with sometimes boring, random facts. She likes talking about " life on the farm", expressing her opinion and has the most unique laugh I think I have ever heard. Please welcome Cody and Bailey."

Once again the audience cheered. But Bailey was not as enthusiastic as they seemed to be about her participation on this game show. She sighed as she rolled Cody's wheelchair to the closet couch. She had a bad feeling about this. She just hoped that they would both be able to keep their bickering to a minimum. Bailey parked Cody's wheelchair beside the couch and began to sit down, stopping in mid seat as her boyfriend cleared his throat and lifted his arms in the air. She took a deep breath and then lifted him out of his chair and practically threw him on the couch.

Ms. Tutweiller observed the couple with a frown on her face. It was starting to become very obvious that this was not going the way she had hoped it would. But then again, perhaps this was a chance for her most gifted students to actually learn something - something that you couldn't learn from a textbook or lecture. The ability to get along with your partner even if they are having a " bad hair day" , the ability to love someone regardless of their flaws.

" Well, let's get to our last couple shall we," Ms. Tutweiller said, attempting to draw the audience's attention away from the bad-tempered couple. " Couple number three. She is known for exploiting the fact that her daddy owns pretty much everything to do with this ship, clapping her hands together while saying " yay me" and having the personal belief that you can never wear an outfit more then once. He is known for his witty and sometimes off beat sense of humour, his ability to maintain a passing average without actually ever opening his textbook and his impeccable charm - or least his personal belief that he has an impeccable charm. Please give a warm welcome to London and Zack.

The audience cheered, but nothing happened. London and Zack had yet to arrive on the Sky Deck.

" Uh, where are Zack and London?" Ms. Tutweiller asked the four teens already on the couches. They all shrugged their shoulders.

But before anyone could contemplate where the couple could be, a voice rang out from over by the Easy Squeezy. " London Tipton is here!" There was a brief pause before she added, "along with Zack Martin."

At hearing this Cody couldn't help but raise his eyebrows quizzically. Since when did London announce the presence of anyone but herself?

Everyone turned to look at the heiress who was standing by the counter with her million dollar smile on her face, once again posed as if at any moment someone was going to jump out from behind one of the couches and take her picture. She was dressed in a black halter- top dress that flowed to just past her knees with a pair of gold heels. Her hair hung to just below her chest in lose curls. Standing a few feet behind her - trying very hard to not be hit by her hands that had reached out when she announced her presence- was Zack. It was now almost second nature to see him dressed just as lavishly as his "wife". His wardrobe make-over had a way of making him even more attractive to all the teenage girls ( and even a few ladies in their 20's) on the boat. And the dark blue jeans, light blue dress shirt, navy vest and dark blue fedora that he was wearing today was no exception. Plus, the fact that he was " married" to London Tipton only added to the appeal. Although for the first couple of days he had enjoyed the new found attention, he was now already starting to become annoyed with it. And this was only the 4th day. He was beginning to have a new found respect for London and was starting to realize that being in the spotlight was not all that it was cracked up to be.

" London," Ms. Tutweiller called out, " I thought I told everyone to be here by 1 o'clock. It's almost a quarter after. Why are you late?"

London waved her hand her teacher and gave her a look that said ' well, isn't it obvious?' " I heard we were going to be on TV, so I had to make sure that I looked fantabulous ."

Ms. Tutweiller was about to remind London that they weren't actually going to be on television, when something else came to her mind. " Uh, how did you know I was going to do this game show? I tried very hard to keep it a secret."

" Oh, I have my ways."

Ms. Tutweiller sighed. She knew that was all she was going to get. " So, uh, that explains why London is late. But what about you Zack? Do you expect me to believe that you too were busy trying to make yourself look fantabulous?"

He shook his head and gave her a smirk " Well, no. You see, waiting diligently while London makes herself look "hotmazing" is part of my contract. Plus, what kind of trophy husband would I be if I showed up without my lovely wife, whose arm I so wonderfully cling off of?"

London nodded in agreement and Ms. Tutweiller just rolled her eyes. She knew that there would be no point in arguing with the pair - no matter what she said they both had a retort ready to fire back at her. "Well, uh, now that we are all aware of the fact that you are both here, do you mind taking a seat so we can continue?"

They walked over to the middle couch and took a seat.

" All right then," Ms. Tutweiller continued, " here is how this is going to work. I am going to ask you a question and you will write your answer on the white cards beside you. Then I will ask each couple - one at a time - to relieve their answers. If you have the same answer as your partner you get a point. And the couple at the end with the most points wins."

" Ooh," Woody waved his hand in the air, " what do we win, what do we win?"

" Ah yes," Ms. Tutweiller replied with a smile, " the winning couple will be receive - "

" A BRAND NEW CAR," Zack announced in a deep and rather animated voice. " equipped with all the latest bells and whistles - including custom leather seats- the 2012 Ford Mustang Convertible is prefect for cranking up the tines and cruising down the interstate with the top down. Valued at just over thirty-three thousand dollars"

"Thanks for that Zack," Ms. Tutweiller replied, trying hard to hide her smirk. She didn´t want to give off the impression that she improved such an outburst- but in all honestly she often found him rather entertaining. "And you know, "she added, "if the whole mooching off your wife thing doesn´t pan out, you could always get a job making radio announcements.¨

Zack chuckled. " I'm going to take that as a complement."

Ms. Tutweiller didn't repsond. Instead she turned to Woody - whose eyes had lit up like a Christmas tree at the mention of the a chance to win a car - and let out a small impatient sigh. " Woody, no I am not giving away a convertible. The winning couple will be receiving a $50 coupon to the restaurant of their choice and a free day at the spa for two."

" Ah, damn it!" Woody cursed as he folded his arms around his chest and pouted.

Ms. Tutweiller wasn't quite sure if he was upset because he really wanted to win a car or because he wasn't pleased with the prize. Although she figured once he caught on to the fact that free food was involved his mood would most likely change. But at the moment she honestly didn't really care why he was behaving in a childish manner- she had a game show to continue. " Okay then, let's begin with first question. Who wears the pants in your relationship?" A rather cheesy theme song began to play - counting down the time the couples had to answer the question.

When the music stopped Ms. Tutweiller once again spoke into her mike. " Times up everyone." She walked over to the couch closest to her. " Why don't we hear from Woody and Addison first." She held out her mike. " Woody, what did you put as an answer?"

" Well, since I've never seen Addison in a skirt, I am doing to say her." He paused for a second, rubbing his chin as another thought came to his mind. " Although come to think about it, you would never see me in skirt either…hmmmm… so it could be me too. Oh, I don't really know."

Ms. Tutweiller rolled her eyes and shook her head. Why did she have to end with students who at times could be so dense? Wasn't there a application process to get into Seven Seas High? If so, how did certain people pass? " Uh, Woody, it's not that complicated. Is it you or her ." She wasn't in the mood to explain to him that he completely missed the point of the question.

" Uh….."

" What did you put on your card?"

Woody quickly glanced at the card before flipping it over for everyone to see. " Her."

" Right then, Addison?" Ms. Tutweiller continued.

" Well," Addison began as she took a deep breath, " if you take the question literally, then there really isn't an answer because like Woody said, we both wear pants. Although sometimes I think Woody doesn't really like to because whenever I show up at his cabin he is always wearing his boxers which I find really dis-"

" Addison? You're point?"

Addison raised a finger in the air. " Right, but if you mean figuratively, which I think you do, then it's most definitely me. I mean, do I have remind everyone of the time I beat my husband in an arm wrestling competition?" She flipped her card over and showed everyone what it said. ' Me' in capital letters and a smiley face with it's tongue sticking out.

"All right then," Ms. Tutweiller replied. " Well, I guess you have the same answer, so a point for Woody and Addison."

The audience clapped.

" Now, let's see if anyone else somehow manage to get the same answer as their partner. London, what did you put?" Ms. Tutweiller walked over to the middle couch and pointed her mike in London's direction. She had the odd feeling that Woody was not the only one who misinterpreted the question and they were in for another " but we both wear pants" discussion. She was thoroughly surprised when London answered.

" Its…ME!" She gave Zack a quick glance before continuing. " I know Zack would like to think it's him, but hello, I'm London Tipton." She said the last part as if just being London Tipton was a viable reason for something, which it kind of was.

Zack placed a hand on his wife's shoulder while shaking his head. " Ah, but honey…" He trailed off. He didn't really have a good argument against that. She was the one who essentially controlled this whole relationship. She decided what they did, when they did it and even how the did. Hell, she even decided how he dressed. Plus, if it wasn't for her money, he most definitely wouldn't be enjoying the perks he currently enjoyed. He slowly took his hand off her and frown. If this had been a legit relationship he would even go as far as to say he was " whipped" He wasn't quite sure how he felt about that.

" Uh, Zack, I'm guessing you don't have the same answer as London."

He didn't respond.

Ms. Tutweiller nodded and then turned to her last couple. " Bailey, what did you put?"

She held up her card for everyone to see. " Not Cody."

The audience responded with " ooohhhs" and " aaahhhs". But Ms. Tutweiller ignored them as she turned to Cody, waiting for his response to not only the question, but also Bailey`s answer. " Cody?"

He scowled slightly. " Well, apparently it's not me, so it doesn't really matter what I say, now does it?"

Ms. Tutweiller frowned. Perhaps this game was not the best idea. `` Um, right then…why don`t we just go to the next question then. What do you look for/ what is the most important thing in a relationship?"

Once again the music played and the couples wrote their answers on their cards. When the time was up Ms. Tutweiller turned to Cody and Bailey. " Okay, Bailey what did you say?"

Without so much as giving her " husband" a glance, she turned to fully face the audience and flipped over her card. " I wrote trust. And also sharing the responsibilities equally."

A small smirk formed on Ms. Tutweiller's face. Maybe, just maybe, this time their answers would be civil. " Cody?"

He let out a small sigh. " I also wrote trust." He quickly glanced at Bailey before turning away. He knew that he was probably wrong, but his stupid pride wasn't going to let him give in just yet.

" Ah, good a point for Bailey and Cody." The audience cheered. "Now, Woody and Addison, what did you put?"

Woody eagerly flipped his card over. " I wrote someone who can cook and has no sense of smell."

Everyone scrunched up their faces, but either Woody didn't notice or choose to ignore them because he still had a big smile on his face.

" I see…" Ms. Tutweiller continued. This was arguably the most interesting assignment she had ever assigned, and it was only day 4. " Addison is expert culinary skills essential for your perfect relationship?"

" Uh, well no. You see, I'm just going to need someone who is able to keep up with me both physically and mentally."

At this Zack couldn't help but raise a cocky eyebrow - his slightly dirty teenage mind running over all the possible meanings for " someone who is able to keep up with me physically". He was brought back to reality by a sharp pain in his shoulder as London hit him to get his attention. It appeared that she knew exactly what was going on in his mind. He turned and gave her an apologetic smirk in which she responded with an eye roll. You could dress him up, but that didn't mean you could take him out.

" All rightie then, how about you London, what did you put?"

She face lit up with a hug smile as she flipped over her card. On it was a stick figure carrying two bags of money. " ME!"

_Will all her answers be 'me'? _Zack thought slightly irritatingly as he glanced over at his wife's drawing. _Where is the London I went to dinner yesterday? The one who was so concerned about Cody? _He shrugged his shoulders slightly . _She's probably in the same place that the Zack who gets an A+ on a history paper is. _

" And what about you Zack? What are you looking for?"

He cleared his throat and smirked , " Well…."

Ms. Tutweiller stopped him. " If it's inappropriate, I don't want to hear it."

Zack quickly glance at his card, even though he knew exactly what he had written. At first he _had_ written something that might be considered inappropriate, but at the last moment he had crossed it out and written something else. But now, seeing everyone focused on him, waiting for an answer, he wasn't sure he wanted to read what he had put. Maybe - perhaps just like London - he wasn't really ready to show people the " other" side of him. " Uh….well…"

Ms. Tutweiller took his hesitation as a yes and frowned. " Did you put London?"

" Well, no."

" All right then, moving on. How many kids do you want?"

Although upset he was rushed past, he was also slightly relieved. Zack thought about the question for a moment and then - letting out a small sigh- wrote the answer he knew everyone would be expecting, not the real, honest one.

" All right, time's up," Ms. Tutweiller called as the music once again ended. "Addison, what did you put?

" Well….I think I would like five, six, seven or even eights kids. Ooohh, then I could like have my own boy band, unless there were all girls because then it would a girl band. Or a combination group like the Partridge Family."

" So lots of kids then. And Woody?"

He flipped over his card to reveal a big circle with a line through it.

" Okay, so no point for you then. Moving on. London?"

London flipped over her card to also reveal a zero - expect hers had flowers and hearts in the middle. " I don't do kids."

" I see, and what about your husband? Does he "do kids"?"

London turned to face Zack and gave him a smirk. " Do you " do kids" Zack?"

Zack cleared his throat and tried hard not to giggle at who dirty that sounded. Giving his head a quick shake and putting on a cheeky smirk he responded with " Could you honestly see me being a father?"

Before Ms. Tutweiller could reply, Cody piped up. " A father that actually takes care of his kids, no. But having illegitimate children running around the country, perhaps."

Zack turned and shot daggers in his brothers direction. " Hey, can it gimpy." He suddenly had the urge to hit his younger brother over the head. _What the hell is your problem? When did you become such an asshole? _But upon glancing up and noticing that everyone was staring at him he gave his brother a weak smile " The question was how many kids do you want, not how many kids will you unfortunately have."

Ms. Tutweiller glanced at her most promising student and shook her head. She was highly disappointed in his behaviour right now and she had yet to ask him the question. And for a second she thought about not doing so. But, who knew, maybe he had answered a nicely , like the last question. " Ah….Bailey?"

She gave Cody a quick glare before responding. " Well, first off, if Cody is going to make being a jerk a permanent part of his personality, I'm not going to have the time or energy to look after kids because I will be too busy looking after him. But, putting that aside, I would like to have three kids." She flipped over her card to show everyone that she had written " 3" down.

Ms. Tutweiller frowned slightly at the look on Cody's face. Bailey had most definitely hit a nerve. " Uh…Cody what did you put?"

" Well….well, if Bailey is going to treat her children the way she treats me…then…then I don't think I would want her to be the mother of my children," he fired back in an attempt to make her hurt as much as she had made him hurt.

Bailey got up from her seat. And Cody- despite being crippled- followed suit. " Oh really? Is that what you think?"

" Yeah, yeah it is."

" Well, you know what, if that's the way you feel, then maybe this just isn't going to work out. We are through." And with that she pushed her way pasted him and stormed off the Sky Deck.

" Fine!" Cody yelled after her and then rushed off in the opposite direction.

Ms. Tutweiller turned to the remaining couples . "Um….well that didn't go as plan. I guess….class dismissed."

The four remaining teens- and the studio audience - packed there things and quietly left the set. They all knew that there had been a little bit of tension between Cody and Bailey, but no one expected it to end like this.

Ms. Tutweiller let out a sigh as she watched the students leave. Taking a quick glance around the set she noticed that Zack had forgotten his cards on the couch and walked over to pick them up. She was about to throw them out when she noticed one of the cards had something crossed out on it. She shook her head as she read it. "Great Sex" had been crossed out and underneath it had been written "Unconditional Love". " Oh, Zack. There really is hope for you, isn't there?" she let out another sigh. " Now, if only I could say the same thing for your brother."

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**After lots of debating with myself I have decided to put this story on the bac****kburner and focus on my other fic - Blissfully Pathetic. The problem is that when I started this story I just jumped into it and I didn't really have a plan and now I am kind of at a block. Plus, I am not a fan of writing really fanficy stories and I know that I am not putting all my effort into this , so I would rather just put it aside for now and maybe came back later when I know exactly what I want to do with it. **


	5. Chapter 5

**It's funny how the story I was planning on taking a break from is the one I update first. But I think that the fact that this story is by far my most popular piece of writing on this site ( with an average of 8.5 reviews per chapter, 15 favourites and 24 alerts) had something to do with it - not gonna lie * Smiles* Thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favourited or alerted. **

**Also for obvious reasons the episodes that happened after "Marriage 101" did not occur in this AU.**

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**Friday, October 8th 2010 - Day 5**

Zack glanced up from washing empty smoothie cups, a small frown forming on his lips. The sight of his brother standing by the railing of the ship all alone, staring out a sea, was somewhat unsettling. Logically Zack knew that his brother had been wrong to treat Bailey the way he had and that he sort of deserved what he had gotten. But another part - one that was slowly creeping to the forefront of his mind - knew that Cody truly did care about Bailey and had probably just made the biggest mistake of his life. And although there had been moments during yesterday's fiasco when he had truly wanted to smack his brother upside the head and give him a few choice words, Zack knew whole heartily that what Cody needed more then anything right now was some moral support. He supposed he could leave the reprimanding for another time. Sighing Zack threw down his dish towel and let out a whistle. " Hey Cody, come here."

Cody jumped slightly at the sound of someone calling him and then turned around. Upon noticing his brother beckoning him with his finger, he raised an eyebrow quizzically before slowly making his way to the Easy Squeezy. Sitting down on a stool he waited for Zack to explain why he had disrupted his brooding.

Quickly grabbing a clean cup from the pile he had just washed, Zack began to make a Banana Fophana. When it was done he handed it to Cody, giving him his best attempt at a sympathetic smile. " Here, it's on me."

Cody picked up the cup and glanced it over suspiciously ." What did you do to it?"

Zack let out a mock gasp. " How could you? My own brother, accusing me of tampering with a man's Banana Fophana!"

Cody rolled his eyes, but took a sip of the smoothie anyways. He had not realized just how little he had eaten since yesterday afternoon until now, the smooth liquid suddenly extremely inviting. He took another big sip.

After a moment Cody let out a sigh and placed his half empty cup on the counter. " Uh…" He wasn't sure what he wanted to say, just that he wanted - needed- to talk to his brother. He always felt better once he confided in Zack.

But before Cody could even begin to organize his thoughts and feelings into coherent sentences they were interrupted by Woody who - seemingly oblivious to the fact that he had disrupted the beginning of a more intimate moment between the twins- sat down in the stool beside him. " Hey guys! What's up?"

Cody shrugged his shoulders and took another sip of his drink, pretending that he had not just been moments away from confessing how he really felt about yesterday, about Bailey in general, about everything going on in his life. " Not much. Where's Addison?"

" Oh, she's in London and Bailey's room," he replied nonchalantly, before grabbing a " Berry Surprise" from Zack - his usual. Zack added the drink to Woody's tab and Cody's to his.

" They're probably talking about me," Cody grumbled in response before downing the last gulp of his drink. Zack grabbed his cup to make him other one, but his shook his head. " One's enough."

Zack place the cup in the sink of dirty dishes and then placed his hand on his brother's shoulder. " They're not talking about you," he encouraged, " they are probably doing each other's nail or something stupid like that."

Woody shook his head. " No, they're definitely talking about him."

Cody groaned and Zack glared before pointing out sternly. " Not helping Woodchuck."

Cody let out a defeated sigh. " Could this have been any worse?" He placed his in his hands.

Zack shrugged his shoulders. " You never know, it could have been." He gave his brother a sheepish grin, hoping that a little poking fun of the situation might lighten the mood.

Cody glanced up and raised an eyebrow sarcastically. " Oh, yeah? How so?"

" Well, " Zack continued, " you could have broken up somewhere romantic. Like, say, on top of the Eiffel Tower."

" Ooooh and then….and then Zack and I could have suddenly fallen right out of the sky and landed on you," Woody added enthusiastically.

" What?" Cody furrowed his brow in both confusion and wonderment. Where _did _Woody come up with the things he said? Sometimes he was worse the Zack…or even, shockingly, London. "That doesn't even make sense. That couldn't possibly happen."

" Well, yeah, obviously," Woody pointed out as he took a big sip of his smoothie, " because in order for you and Bailey to break up on Eiffel Tower you would still have to be together and seeing as you aren't …"

" Thanks for that Woody. You are so encouraging."

" No problem." The bigger guy continued to drink his smoothie as if what he had just was the proper response- Cody's sarcastic tone seemingly having no impact.

Both the twins turned to stare at him for a moment and then Cody shook his head and left the juice bar, not in the mood to explain the meaning behind everything he said.

Woody looked up from his drink and frowned at Cody's sudden departure and Zack's look of contempt. " What?"

* * *

" Hey there husband."

A smile automatically graced Zack's face as he glanced up at London who was walking over in his direction. She had texted him earlier and told him to wait for her in front of Tutweiller's classroom, instead of coming to pick her up from her cabin like he normally did. Something about Bailey's still being a mess over her recent break up with Cody and her not wanting him to see her so upset. Zack was just surprised that London had yet to take advantage of her roommate's situation. But then again, maybe he wasn't. Whether other people besides him noticed or not , London had been slowly evolving over the past couple months - particularly since this assignment had started. Or maybe she hadn't changed that much, maybe he was just viewing her in a different light. What ever the reason, the London that stood in front of him was not same London that lived in the hotel.

" Hey gorgeous," he called back.

She automatically dug into her purse to pull out a wad of cash but he placed his hand on her arm to stop her. " No, consider this one free." Her look of surprise caused him to chuckle. " What? Can't a gentleman compliment a pretty lady without expecting something in return?"

She pondered that for a moment. " A gentlemen could. You on the other hand…."

" Hey!" He lightly hit her arm. " I'm a gentlemen."

" Prove it."

He gave her a cheeky grin. Flirting with London was fun - she actually flirted back, something not many of the girls he tried to pick up didn't do. That was something he was most definitely going to miss once this assignment was over. Without saying anything, he leaned forward and opened up the door to the classroom for her.

She shook her head and him as she walked by and laughed. He furrowed his brow slightly, confused at what was so funny.

He was about to follow London into the classroom when he heard footsteps behind him. Instinctively he let go of the door and turned around. Running towards him - her hair in a messy ponytail, an open book bag with a textbook half sticking out ( almost as if it had been quickly shoved in) slung over her shoulder- was Bailey. Quickly Zack opened the door for her. She mumbled thanks as she rushed past him.

He frowned as his brother's ex-girlfriend stalked to a seat in the back of the classroom - on the opposite end of room from Cody. The next week and a half was going to be pure hell for the both of them. He hoped that they at least had enough common sense to keep their private lives out of the classroom. But judging by how "well" things went yesterday evening, that wasn't likely.

" Ah, Zack," Ms. Tutweiller called out, " are you going to join this class or are you just going to stand in the doorway all afternoon?"

" Huh?" Zack glanced around the classroom and upon noticing everyone was looking at him smiled. " Hmm, Ms.T, I don't know. I kind of like the view from this doorway. To my right I have the breathtaking, calming ocean, and to my left a handful of beautiful girls- " London cleared her throat. " - and more importantly one stunningly gorgeous women." He gave his "wife a wink before nodding his head. " Yep, from where I'm standing everything is looking pretty good. All I need now is a an ice cold drink in one hand and a foot long sub in the other."

Ms. Tutweiller raised an eyebrow at him. " An ice cold drink?"

" Of Mountain Dew. Obviously. What do you think I was talking about? Beer? " He frowned at her. " Ms. Tutweiller, you should know me better then that by now. I don't drink alcohol…on a weekday. "

" Zack just sit down before I decide to give you a detention for being late."

He gave her one more quick smile before taking his seat beside London.

" Alright class," Ms. Tutweiller continued as she turned to face her class fully, " as you - wait, Zack, did you just confess to under age drinking?'

The was a moment of silence before " Nnnoooo?" Zack pursed his lips and then pointed a finger his teacher. " No, I did not."

She gave him stern look, but dropped the subject. She knew that Moseby should probably be informed that there was most likely some partying going on behind his back, but she kind of felt like giving Zack a break. He most definitely didn't need another reason to have the short tempered man after him. She directed her attention back to the class. " Now, as you all know, yesterday did not go exactly as planned. But I think we can move on from that."

Both Cody and Bailey looked up at their teacher as she said this, both of them dawning guilty expressions. They knew that what they had done had been wrong and had greatly disrupted the class.

" Now, I am going to give every couple one of these booklets," she picked up a thick file folder from her desk. " Each one is designed specifically for each couple. They contain questions about your new families which must be completed by Monday."

There was a murmur throughout the class.

Ms. Tutwieller continued. " That's right, today you are all becoming parents!"

All the students began to talk at once; some ( most of them guys) protesting while others showing their excitement for this new development. But one couple that wasn't talking was Cody and Bailey.

Cody slowly rasied his hand.

Ms. Tutweiller quickly quieted everyone before nodding in his direction. " Yes Cody?"

" Uh…what about…?"

" You and Bailey?"

" Yeah." He glanced down at his desk.

She grabbed the file off her desk that was marked " Cody and Bailey" and placed it on his desk. " You two will do this part and the whole assignment just like everyone else. Except you'll being doing it a little bit different. The two of you are now a divorced couple."

Both Cody and Bailey protested. " But-"

" No buts. The two of you will work together or you will both be getting an F. You both have to learn that sometimes you have do things that you don't want to. And that you don't always get what you want. "

They nodded their heads slowly- both to proud and obsessed about getting into an Ivy League school to except an F. Particularly Cody, who already had one because he had been busy with Bailey the night before and forgotten all about his essay. That night suddenly didn't seem worth it anymore. He had lost two things that he now so desperately wanted back - his impeccable school record and his virginity. But, as Ms. Tutwiler clearly pointed out, you don't always get what you want.

Ms. Tutweiller nodded her head as she continued. " Cody seeing as you technically don't have income I have decided that your legs are now healed up and you can go back to work. And also, seeing as you only make minimum wage , you can have second job. Do you want to be a mailman or a janitor?"

" Um…I guess I'll be a janitor."

Ms. Tutweiller nodded again and wrote that down in a notebook she was carrying around. " Now the two of you need to work together to figure out how to raise your three children, a 15 year old boy and twin 9 year old girls. Everything you need to know about your divorce, including how much Cody has to pay in child support and who gets what, is in your folder. So Bailey, why don't you come up over here and sit in this empty desk in the front by Cody, okay?"

Reluctantly Bailey grabbed her stuff and moved to the desk beside Cody's.

Ms. Tutweiller then turned to the next couple, Woody and Addison. " Okay, seeing as Addison wants lots of kids and Woody wants none, I tried to compromise a bit. The two of you have four kids. A 12 year old girl, an 8 year old boy, a 5 year old boy and a 2 year old girl."

Woody's head jolted up quickly. " Whoa, how did that happen?"

For his desk in the corner Zack let out a chuckle. " See Woodchuck, when a mommy and daddy love each other very much…."

" Zack" Ms. Tutweiller tone should have been a warning that Zack shouldn't push his luck to far. That maybe, just maybe, she might let something slip the next time she ran into Moseby.

But Zack just could not resist. " Oh right, that's to optimistic for Woody . How about, when two young people get really drunk…"

" Zackary"

" Ooooohhhh, Zackary," Woody chimed up from his desk.

Zack turned to glare at him. " Who are you? Cody?" But that was as far as he went. He knew he was tiptoeing the line and it time to stop, otherwise he would most likely cross it.

Ms. Tutweiller grabbed Woody and Addison's folder from the pile and placed it on Woody's desk. " Regardless of whether you are aware of how it happened or not, Woody, you have four children. Have fun."

She then turned the next couple, but before she could open her mouth to inform them of how many kids they had, she was interrupted.

" Not happening." London's tone said she meant business. " Zack and I are very careful about those kinds of things."

" That's right Ms T… we are very careful." He resisted the urge to add ' No glove, no love.' He was already getting on her nerves.

Ms. Tutweiller just rolled her eyes. " London, what would be so wrong about having a baby?"

" Uh, I would get fat. Obviously."

Ms. Tutweiller frowned . " Seriously London, you would get fat? Famous people don't stay fat after they have a baby, they can afford plastic surgery."

London thought this over for a second. " True…but still," she cringed, " no."

" Look, London, like I told Bailey and Cody, sometimes you have to do things you don't want to-"

" Not when you're filthy rich," London pointed out.

"Zack?" Ms. Tutweiller turned to him for support but he just raised his hands - an indication that he wanted nothing to do with this. Truthfully, he wasn't 100% against the idea of having a couple of kids, way in the future. But he wasn't the one in control of this "relationship" and this was one fight he was not going to get in the middle of.

Ms. Tutweiller groaned." London, despite all your best efforts, Zack got you pregnant, okay?" Zack's ego purred at this, causing him to shake his head at himself. Even though this was pretend he had the sudden urge to brag about ' knocking London up' . " And you now have a 13 year-old daughter. Deal with it!"

" A 13 year-old? But, that would have made me…made me really young when I had her." London looked slightly worried.

Zack just rolled his eyes, but didn't say anything. Yes, London was changing, but she was doing so very slowly. Sometimes a little to slowly in his opinion.

" London, I'm pretty sure it's was not physiologically possible for you to have a child at age 8. But this is pretend, so get pretending and start answering the questions in this booklet." Ms. Tutweiller placed the folder on London's desk and the walked back to the front of the room.

London grumbled at her as she opened up the folder to look at the pages inside. After a moment she closed it back up and sighed. She knew absolutely nothing about how to be a parent. Glancing back up at Ms. Tutwiler - who was busy at her desk- she hoped that the women bought her " it will make me fat" gimmick. She wouldn't be able to live with herself if Ms. Tutwiler - or anyone for that matter- knew the real reason she didn't want to have kids.

* * *

**Okay so there you have it, Chapter 5. **

**And I am so so so sorry that it takes forever for me to update, I really am. It makes me mad that it takes me months to get the next chapter up. But as you all probably know, I am a HUGE scatterbrain and sometimes no matter how hard I try I CAN NOT focus on writing. Seriously, sometimes I stare at a blank screen for like a hour before I write something down- it's rather hard for me to get ideas from my head to the paper. But that does not mean I don't have ideas- because I have tons and I entend to eventually get then all posted. It just might take awhile. And I greatly appreciate the people who have offered to help me update faster ( you know who you are), but I don't think this is a problem you can help with. But if I ever need ideas or help, I know who to call. **

**As for what's next, who really knows. But please review and even give me the occasionally PM to remind me to get posting, because it all those little nudges that are pushing me in the direction of completing my goal of actually finishing a chapter story. **

**Side note: Has anyone checked out Miley Cyrus's new cd? I bought it today and I must say I am actually quite impressed. Particularly her cover of " Every Rose Has It's Thorn". When I first heard she remade that song I was like WTF? But it's actually really pretty. * Smiles* **


	6. Chapter 6

**This might sound odd in an AN, but I know very little about the adult entertainment industry. So, for those of you out there that have actually picked up a copy of Hugh Hefner's iconic magazine, bear with me if the things I say about it are not legit . I just needed a dirty magazine, and PlayBoy was the first one the popped into my head. **

**Also, I think you can actually climb through the porthole in Zack's room from the hallway. But just for the heck of it, I decided that the hallway ends at the boys cabins and that Zack's room is the one at the end so in order to climb through the porthole he would have to climb up on the railing of the ship and somehow lean over the side of the ship and slide through. **

**And I honestly can't believe all the response this story is getting. I was not expecting to be getting almost 10 reviews per chapter ( I was hoping for maybe 5) So, seriously, thank you very much for all the reviews, favs and alerts. **

**As always, the characters may seem a bit OOC, but that's because - despite really liking the characters- I always tend to want to write them more realistic. And the tone of this chapter is definitely different then the pervious ones. I seemed to have drifted away from the more episody, fanficy, feel. **

**BTW: I have come to the conclusion that you can totally tell that I talk way to much for my own good through my writing *Smiles* Like always, this chapter contains a lot of dialogue. This is not my longest chapter, but it comes pretty darn close. And one more thing before you start reading, can you find the episode references in this chapter? Hint: there are 6 obvious ones, and one that's kind of implied. **

* * *

**Saturday, October 9th**** 2010 - Day 6**

Zack let out a groan as he rolled over in bed, pulling one of his many pillows over his ears in an attempt to drown out the insufferable noise of someone banging on his cabin door. " Go away," he grumbled, his voice barely audible through the pile of pillows, blankets and dirty laundry that had managed to contort themselves around his body while he had been asleep. But the banging just persisted- growing steadily louder with each passing moment.

Opening his eyes slowly, Zack ventured a quick glance at the alarm clock perched on the edge of his bedside dresser. He squinted just to make sure he was seeing the numbers right and then frowned. Cody was late for his Saturday morning wake up call - and Cody was never late.

The banging continued, causing Zack's frown to deepen. _Why doesn't he just use his damn key already?_

Slowly he sat up and began to untangle himself before stifling a yawn. He paused for a few second before standing up and shuffling his way towards his cabin door, grumbling as he unlocked the door and opened it. " I'm awake you impatient-" He stopped mid- sentence at the sight of the person on the other side of the door. It was most definitely not Cody. " Uh…hi."

Raising her right eyebrow slightly, London slowly took in the boy now standing in front of her. But if the fact that his hair was standing up in all directions and that he was wearing nothing but a pair of wrinkled black boxers with flaming guitars on them bothered her, she didn't show it. "You do know that it's like two in the afternoon, right ?"she asked as she walked right past him and into his room - almost as if seeing him in his underwear was a common occurrence.

" Yeah, so?" he asked as he shut the door behind her and turn to face his unexpected guess.

She stared at him for a moment, her deep brown eyes seeming to see right through him, causing Zack to suddenly feel more naked then he actually was. " So, have you actually done anything productive today?"

_What the hell man?_ he badgered himself as he pretended to think over her question in an attempt to cover up his sudden embarrassment. _You're wearing boxers for fuck sakes! It's not like __she hasn__'t seen you without a shirt on before, you do go swimming together. _He decided to do what he always did in a situation where he felt uncomfortable - cover it up with some witty remark and a smile. " Uh, does getting up to go pee count as being productive?"

She scrunched her nose. " No."

" Well then no, no I have not."

London rolled her eyes playfully and couldn't help but give him a small smirk before glancing around the room. But her smirk turned into a scowl when she noticed a pair of designer jeans she had just bought him crumpled up and half hanging off an office chair in front of a desk full of papers, magazines and empty candy wrappers. She stalked over to the chair, picked up the jeans and turned on her heel to glare at him. "Why are these all crumpled up? Why aren't they folded up nicely and in your closet like they should be?"

He shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly. " I dunno. Besides, why does it matter to you anyways? I wore them yesterday. Aren't you the one who is always pointing out that London Tipton's " trophy husband" doesn't wear an outfit more then once? Why put the clothes away , or even keep them at all for that matter, if you're never gonna wear them again?"

She narrowed her eyes at him but didn't say anything. She was not very fond of people putting her in her place - even if that person happened to be one of her best friends.

" So, " Zack continued as he grabbed the pair of jeans out her hands and tossed them on the bed, " what exactly _is_ the reason for your sudden desire to venture into my neck of the woods and disrupt my plans for a rather unproductive Saturday?"

London let out a irritated grunt as she cleared off the rest of his chair and took a seat. " The couple voted "most likely to still be together at our 10 year high school reunion" are currently starting World War Whatever in my cabin. My plan, was to hang out with you all afternoon." She paused as she once again looked him over. And once again Zack suddenly felt ridiculously uncomfortable, instinctively reaching for his pants on the bed. " Or at least it was, until now. By the way, do you even plan on leaving your room today?"

He threw the pants back on the bed and looked away for a brief moment. _This is stupid. She doesn't seem to mind that you aren't wearing pants, so why am I suddenly freaking out ? And why does she keep checking me out? Whoa, calm down there buddy. Who said anything about London checking you out? _He cleared his throat. " …uh well, that depends. Do you happen to know what the buffet is serving for supper tonight?" He inwardly prayed that she didn't notice his nervousness.

" Zack Martin," London abruptly stood up and pointed a finger at him, " how dare you insinuate that I eat at the buffet."

He couldn't help but chuckle at her antics. " Insinuate? That's a pretty big word for an " air-head" heiress. Don't ya think?" He teased.

" Oh, shut up! And put some pants on. You look like hobo."

Zack felt his heart momentarily stop at her comment- there went his ' she doesn't seem to notice/mind me being pantless' theory - but quickly regained his composure. Mock saluting her, he replied with a smile. " Yes Ma'am." Then he walked over in the direction of his desk. " But first, I gotta find that piece of paper that gets slipped under the door every Monday morning. You know, the one that tells you what's going on during the week."

"Why?"

He shook his head at her question- as if the answer was so obvious." So that I know what the buffet is serving, obviously." He began to go through the pile of papers and magazines on the desk, tossing the ones he didn't need on the floor and mumbling to himself as he did so. " Nope. Uh-uh not that one. Hmmm," he stop to look over on particular magazine, " I don't remember looking at this one." He tossed it on his bed, as a reminder to read it later on, and then kept on looking. " Aha, there it is! Now, let's see. Saturday, Saturday, Saturday, right. Tonight's buffet - Mexican. Tempting, but still…"

London shook her head in mild annoyance. " Forget the buffet, okay? Look, I'll buy you a steak and lobster dinner, just as long as you get dressed and we leave this room."

He pondered this for a moment, pretending that he really was considering spending all day lounging around his room in his boxers, and then gave her a cheeky grin. " As long as we don't have to go shopping, it's a deal."

After a moment London sighed. " Fine, we won't go shopping - today. But tomorrow we need to pick you out a new outfit for school on Monday."

" London-"

She shook her head. " Don't you London me. Today we do what you want, tomorrow we go shopping."

He rolled his eyes as he once again picked up his pair of jeans from off the bed and began to put them on. " Fine, tomorrow we can go shopping. But that means that today we need to work on that booklet Tutweiller gave us yesterday."

London cocked an eyebrow as she grabbed a clean button up shirt from his closet and passed it to him. He nodded his head in thanks. " Wait, am I hearing this right? The Zackary Martin actually wants to do his homework? What? Did you fall on your head or something?"

He stuck his tongue out at her." Ha ha, you're such a comedian." Shaking his head, he began to button up his shirt. " No, I'm actually being serious. I don't know if you are aware of this or not , but we're actually doing pretty damn good on this assignment. Not A+ worthy mind you, but good enough that my mother might actually be tempted to put my report card up on the fridge ." He attempted to flatten his hair with his hands, but gave up when it wouldn't stay down. Letting out an annoyed sigh he headed towards his bathroom , still going on about why he was so keen on doing his homework. "And I don't know about you, but I sure as hell don't want to spend another year in high school. So, I figure if we get at least a B on this assignment, that should bump my mark up high enough for me to pass. Then I won't to have spend my free time next semester learning social studies one on one with Queen Tut. Well, more like two on one, seeing as if I don't pass then there's a good chance you won't pass either."

" I see…" She still wasn't quite sure if something was seriously wrong with him. Zack never did his homework. Well, not without being forced into it.

Poking his head out of the bathroom, he chuckled at the bewildered look on her face and gave her a smirk. " And besides, I'm kind of enjoying this."

" Really?"

" Well, yeah," he admitted sheepishly. " You're fun to hang out with."

She gave him a cheeky grin. " You just like hanging out with me because of all the perks."

" Yes, London. You got me. I'm such a greedy bastard," his voice dripping with sarcasm, " But that's why you love me."

Much to her surprise, a small giggle escaped from her lips at his comment. _When did he become so charming? _She let out a content sigh. If she was being totally honest with herself, Cody and Bailey's arguing had less to do with the reason why she was here then the fact that she also was kind of enjoying this assignment.

Moving a pile of dirty laundry, she sat down on his bed and waited for him to finish in the bathroom, her eye catching the magazine he had thrown there earlier. Her eyes bugged out slightly at the picture on the cover. "Zack? What's this?"

He emerged from his bathroom, fully dressed, hair combed and ready to go. " What's what?"

" This."

He momentarily froze at the sight of London holding up the latest issue of PlayBoy Magazine._ Shit! Note to self- be more careful with your stash. _He shook his head at his own stupidity. How could he have been so careless? " Uh….a magazine."

" A magazine?" London turned away from him slightly in fear that if she kept looking at him she would burst into laughter. He just looked way to damn cute and funny when he was embarrassed.

" Yeah, you know, full of articles and pretty pictures." He mentally slapped himself as soon the last part left mouth. _Pretty pictures? Way to put your foot in your mouth there buddy!_

She just raised an eyebrow and smirked, causing him to suddenly wish he could disappear- the look on her face giving him the odd feeling that she was scrutinizing him. " Don't look at me like that- it makes me uncomfortable," he snapped as he grabbed the magazine out of her hands and put it in the drawer of his bedside dresser. " And how do you know that I don't just have that magazines for the articles. You know, the ones about cars and guns and video games and …" He trailed off, no longer even convincing himself.

" Naughty nurses?" she finished off for him.

He scowled, suddenly very annoyed with her. Yes, he Zackary Martin had a collection of dirty magazines - just like pretty much every other 17 year-old guy. Well, perhaps not Cody. Or at least if he did, he didn't share it with his own twin brother. " Yes London, yes, Playboy prints articles about Naughty Nurses. And guess what? They have pictures too" He get out an aggravated sigh. " Look London, I'm a 17 year-old single guy, okay? And sometimes I have to urge to, you know, relieve some tension."

The moment he finished his sentences he had the sudden urge to run and hide - the weight of the situation rapidly dawning on him. Had he _really _just confessed to London that he jerked off? _Holy shit! _" Uh…." he instinctively took a step away from her and let out a low whistle " Wow. This is awkward." There was a moment of silence. " Um, I'm gonna, uh, I'm gonna go now and lock myself in the bathroom and drowned myself in the sink. Okay? Okay."

Unable to look London in the eye, he quickly turned on his heel and walked into his bathroom - shutting and locking the door behind him. Taking a seat on the toilet, he let out a huge breath. _What the fuck was that? _Besides Cody, he was never _that_ open with people. So why was it when he talked to London lately he suddenly felt like no topic was off limits- even when it clearly was. Masturbating was _not _something you talked about with your female friends - particularly when they were so good looking. _Oh, just kill me now. _

* * *

Taking a deep breath Zack walked over to the table that London was sitting at, trying to muster up as much dignity as he could. Despite what had been an obvious attempt at an encouraging note that she had left for him - telling him stop beating himself up and meet her on the Sky Deck later to work on their assignment- he still felt rather embarrassed and stupid about his earlier slip up.

London glanced up from a piece of paper she was writing on and smiled, beckoning for him to take a seat beside her. " Hey Zack."

He sat down, a small frown forming on his lips. She seemed oddly at ease with him, almost as if what he had confessed earlier hadn't really made much of an impact her. _Maybe, maybe I'm blowing this whole thing way out of proportion? But still…. _" Uh, London? About earlier…."

She tossed the pencil that was in her hand down in annoyance and glanced back up at him. " Please, just don't apologize, okay?"

His frown grew bigger. " What? Why? London, I was out of line. I shouldn't have…."

" Have what, Zack?"

He cleared his throat. Was she really going to make him spell it out? " Look there are just some things we shouldn't talk about, okay? I know I was wrong- "

She groaned in frustration. " Fine, fine, if you insist, go and apologize already."

He shook his head, a bewildered expression on his face. " London, what's going on? I mean, a moment ago you seemed all happy to see me and then all the sudden you're pissed off. I'm kind of confused here."

There was a moment of silence before London sighed. " Look…" She paused again, almost as if she was having a difficult time finding the right words to convey how she felt. " I don't have very many friends, okay? Well, I do have friends, but not good friends, you know." She pursed her lips, obviously still unsure how to get her point across. Letting out another sigh she continued." It's just…besides Moseby I don't really have anyone I can just be myself around. Except you. And these last couple of day have been, I don't know, kind of nice, you know. I mean yesterday I yelled shit when I stubbed my toe on the corner of your stupid desk. And I would never do that in front of anyone else." She shrugged her shoulders. " I just feel…comfortable talking to you, like there is nothing we can't talk about. Like we transcend awkwardness. And then this afternoon…"

" I proved your theory wrong." He sighed. He got it. He felt the same way.

She nodded. " And I know it's stupid, but if you apologized, well then you would just be confirming that I was wrong."

At this Zack cocked his head slightly to the left and glanced her over. There was a vulnerability to her that took him aback for a second. _Who is that? _The women who was sitting in front of him was definitely _not _the London Tipton that grew up in the Tipton Hotel. She would have never admitted to something so personal, would have never put herself out there like this. Slowly he nodded his head as a realization dawned on him. _That's still London. Only she's finally ready to be herself. _He gave her a smile, as a way of telling her everything was okay - he wasn't going to judge her. And that he wasn't about to let some stupid slip up ruin their friendship. " So, uh, what's that you were writing before I came?" he asked, hoping a change in subject would get them back into the comfortable rhythm she - and truthfully he - had grown to enjoy.

" Oh, just a list of things I need to do before my birthday next week." The smile she gave him confirmed that they were on the same page.

" Oh, that's right. The big two one, eh? Of course you'll be having a big party, which I _will_ be invited to, right?"

She playfully shook her head. " What if I decide to got the bar or a club? Then what are you going to do?"

He waved his hand dismissively. " Pfft. What do you mean ' then what am I going to do'? Go, of course."

" And how do you plan on getting in? Everyone on this boat knows you're a student."

He gave her a look that said ' isn't it obvious' " Hello? Are you forgetting who you are? If London Tipton wants to take one of her best friends, who just happens to be a minor, to the bar then London Tipton's friend is in for one hell of a night. Because London Tipton always gets what she wants." He flashed her mischievous grin which she returned with an amused smirk. " Speaking of wants, what exactly do you want for your birthday?"

There was a moment of hesitation before she simply answered. " What I want every year."

" What, something that SPARKLES?" he teased.

" Well yeah," she admitted, " but that's not what I meant." She picked up her pencil and began to nervously fiddle with it. Suddenly, she wasn't sure she wanted to tell him what she wanted. _Damn it, you're such a hypocrite. Didn't you just say said you could talk about anything with him? So go ahead London, open your stupid big mouth and talk. Unless all that crap you just said really was just that, crap. _She glanced over at Zack who sat just sat there - giving off the vibe that he had all the time in world to just wait for her- and then shook her head at her antics and thoughts. _It's Zack for goodness sakes! You can trust him. And besides, he's like the master of bullshit. There is no way you can back out now without him knowing. _" I want…I want my daddy to be there."

Oddly, Zack found himself momentarily at a loss of words. He had not expected that. Although now that she had said it, he knew that he should have.

" Did you know that he's only been to seven of my birthdays? And that's including the day I was actually born," she continued, " and three of those times I didn't really get to spend much time with him because he was busy avoiding my mother."

" I had no idea…."

She shrugged her shoulders in an attempt to blow it off. " It's comes with the territory, I guess. He's a busy man and my parents are divorced. I probably shouldn't expect so much from him."

At this Zack sat up straighter in his chair, a genuine look of aversion dawning his face. No matter how busy Mr. Tipton was, it just wasn't right that he constantly let his daughter down. " What? No, London, no, that's not how it's supposed to be. Look, my parents have been divorced since Cody and I were 9. And the only birthday my dad has missed is our 16th and only because he couldn't find a way to get to the Bermuda Triangle. Hell, he even left a tour in Hong Kong just to see our Junior High graduation, and I wasn't even technically graduating. " He paused for a moment. " Yeah, for whatever reason, my parents no longer live together and at times my dad is rather childish, but they are both responsible and mature enough to put there differences aside long enough to do what is right for their children." He felt a burst of pride as he said this. He knew that when it came to coming from a family of divorce, he and Cody were pretty damn lucky. Many children with similar circumstances were often mistakenly used as chest pieces in a game played between their parents- something Zack could thankfully say didn't happen to him and his brother. " And even though this whole marriage thing is pretend, I hope Cody remembers that," he added as an after thought. " I hope he and Bailey are mature enough to realize that their actions effect others. That the well being of their "children" is at stake. "

London nodded in agreement. " And you know if Bailey and Cody misbehave, as the kids' aunt and uncle I think we might just be obligated to kidnap them every once in awhile for a day or two." Her face lit up as ideas suddenly hit her. " Oh, and we could go shopping and hang out by the pool, and-"

" Whoa, calm down there," Zack said with a chuckle. It was quite amusing and oddly endearing to see how absorbed she had suddenly gotten into something that was purely fiction. Perhaps, she would do better at this part of the assignment then everyone expected her to - not that he had any doubts, of course. " What about our own daughter, huh?" He pointed to the booklet that was laying on the table by London's arm. " Have you forgotten about her?"

London rolled her eyes. " No. But other people's kids are so much more fun. You can return them when they misbehave or become boring."

" London."

She rolled her eyes again. " I know, I know."

He shook his head in amusement and then nodded it in the direction of the booklet. " So, beside briefly taking a peek yesterday, have you cracked this bad boy open yet?"

" Pfft, no. But I'm not the one who decided to become the model student, remember? I was waiting for you to do the honours."

He paused for a moment before reaching for the booklet. " Fine. If you insist. " Opening up the booklet to the first page he cleared his throat and continued. " Okay then , first question. ' What is the name of your child?'"

London lifted her hand slightly as the answer immediately struck her. " Well that's easy - London Jr."

" What? No!" he automatically responded as he glanced up from the booklet.

" What do you mean, no?"

His shook his head vigorously. " No, as in not happening, uh-uh, no way."

" And, why not?" she challenged.

" Because…" he paused, momentarily unsure of a legit reason why they couldn't name their child 'London Jr.', " …because it lacks creativity, that's why ."

" Really Zack?"she asked, clearly not falling for his reason.

" Uh-huh."

" So, you're saying that if we had a son instead of a daughter, you wouldn't insist that we name him Zackary?"

He nodded. " That's right."

" I see. And what exactly would you suggest we name him?"

" Aston," he stated matter of factly.

She narrowed her eyes slightly in confusion. "Aston? What kind of name is that?"

He raised his hands up in wonderment, surprised that someone who had as much money as she did couldn't make the connection. " Aston Martin? Hello? Only like one of the sexiest cars on the planet."

She gaped at him for a moment and then out a small snort in disbelief. " Are you serious?"

" Uh, yeah. Why?"

" Wow, Zack, you're such a guy."

He gave her one of his trademark grins and winked. " Guilty as charged."

She couldn't help but laugh. He had the uncanny ability to suddenly lighten the mood or to just make people smile- one of his many qualities she admired. " Okay Mr. Man, so what's our daughter's name then?"

" Um.." He paused, thinking this over. He didn't actually have an idea for a name, he just didn't want to name her London. " …I don't know….how about Andrea?" He shrugged his shoulders, saying the first name that came to his mind.

She thought this over for a second. " Hmm…yeah that works. Andrea Tipton. It kind of has a nice ring, don't you think?"

" Tipton?" He cocked his right eyebrow slightly.

" How is anyone supposed to know she's a Tipton if her last name isn't Tipton?" she pointed out, almost as if this was the most obvious thing in the world.

" Well, how is anyone supposed to know she's a Martin if her last name isn't Martin?" he countered.

" Nobody cares if you're a Martin," she replied, her voice dawning an almost automatic condescending tone. He lifted his right eyebrow and gave her a chastising look, causing her to screw up her face as she mentally reprimanded herself. " Ugh, that wasn't really nice was it?"

His other eyebrow shot up as an expression of genuine surprise dawned his face. Was London apologizing? First opening up about her feelings, now this? When did London Tipton become so….so normal? A small frown formed his lips as another thought hit him. _Maybe she's always been normal. Maybe you just haven't noticed it until now. _Slowly he shook his head to answer her question.

" Fine," she continued, oblivious to his mental realization, " how about we call her Andrea Tipton- Martin, okay?"

He nodded, barely registering what she had said. He was still deep in thought, trying to figure out when exactly he starting viewing the heiress in a new light and what that actually meant

* * *

" You do know we're going to have to cancel our shopping trip tomorrow, right?" Zack asked as he and London turned down the hallway that lead to London and Bailey's cabin later on that evening. Despite good intentions - well at least on Zack's part - they ended up scrapping the idea of actually finishing their homework and spent the majority of the evening creating interesting back stories for the various passengers that venture up on deck for a relaxing evening in the hot tub or to drink a smoothie. Zack's personal favourite was London's theory that roguishly handsome guy who had spent a good two hours sitting by the juice bar, looking over a bunch of file folders and occasionally glancing at other passengers ( predominately students from Seven Seas High), was actually a secret agent looking for young recruits to join him on dangerous, exotic missions around the world. Although it was highly unlikely that this was the case, Zack did admit that he found the man's behaviour to be slightly odd. And he couldn't shake off the feeling that this man had been watching the two of them while they had been " doing their homework."

At Zack's comment London scrunched up her face and put on a ridiculous pout. " Not fair, Zack. You said that if we worked on Tut's project today, we could go shopping tomorrow. And we did work on it."

" But it's due Monday," he pointed out as they stopped in front of her cabin door, " and we only got the first part done. We didn't even get to the main questions, the ones about actually raising our daughter."

She shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly as she opened up the door with her key. " That part is not that important anyways. That's what you have a nanny for."

Instead of following the heiress into her room like he might normally do, Zack paused in the door scrutinizing his " wife" as she deposited her purse on her desk and sat down on her bed to take off her shoes. " You're serious, aren't you?" he asked after a moment of silence.

" About what?" she asked absent- mindly as she put her shoes in the closet.

" Having a nanny raise our daughter."

She narrowed her eyes at him in slight confusion as she sat back down on her bed. " Of course. Why wouldn't I be ? What? Did you actually think that we were going to do all that " parenting" stuff?"

" Um…well, yeah," he admitted truthfully, " yeah, I kinda thought that was the whole point of this assignment. You know, to get you to start thinking about how you are going to raise your own kids sometime way off in the future."

" Exactly," London replied, " and if I was ever to have kids - which I never will by the way- they would be raised by a nanny. So I don't see the problem here."

At this he couldn't help but let out a small huff. Somethings never changed. " Right, because we all know how well that works," he muttered to himself.

" What?" London snapped her head in his direction, a venomous look dawning her usually bright and cheerful face. Obviously, he had nit a nerve.

Ignoring the fact that he knew he was about to head in dangerous waters, Zack ploughed on. " Don't you think you're being a bit of a hypocrite?" He wasn't really sure why he had said that. But it oddly felt like the right thing to say.

"I'm being a hypocrite?" she responded, clearly not pleased at his accusation.

" Yeah, yeah you are." Suddenly he had the need to tell the truth. Nobody ever really told London Tipton the truth - or at least not when it revolved around something she didn't want to hear. Her confession earlier that they could " talk about anything" seemed to fuel this uninhibited desire to be totally honest. " You bitch and complain about how your daddy is never there for you and how you wish your parents had spent more time with you, and yet you would condemn your own child to the same fate. There's no practical need for you to hire a nanny, London. It not like you plan on getting a job that demands all your time. The only other reason I can think of you hiring a nanny is because you don't want to deal with your own child - you only want to be there for the fun parts. You're just like your parents. If that's not hypocritical , then I don't know what is."

London stalked right up to him so fast that he didn`t even notice her get off of her bed. " Don't you dare compare me to my father, I am nothing like him."

Zack took a step back, completely staggered by her response. In all the years of knowing her had he never seen her get that enraged this quickly - the intensity in her eyes momentarily making him fear his life. He turned away and hung his head slightly. He knew he had crossed a line. And not the line he had crossed earlier in his cabin. That one had been embarrassing , but at least it was forgivable. He wasn't quite sure if this one was.

* * *

`Son of bitch!` Zack cursed as he once more dug through his pockets, searching for his keys which were nowhere to be found. Letting out a frustrated groan he lightly banged his head against his cabin door. This evening was definitely _not_ going his way. And the way he saw it, he very few options - none of which really sounded that alluring:

1) He could go back to London`s cabin and then eventually trace his steps back to Sky Deck, searching as he went along. Of course, there was the slight problem that it was almost 11:30 and therefore way past curfew. And while he had snuck out after hours countless of times before, the idea of being caught by Kirby or worse the new hall monitor- a pompous weasel of a sophomore by the name of Ernst who didn`t seem to understand the concept of bribing- was not entirely appealing at the moment. Plus, he would once again have to face London and her wrath. And despite being fully aware of the fact that he probably deserved her being mad at him, confronting a pissed off London was not on his list of things to do anytime in the near future.

2) He could turn around and knock on Cody and Woody`s door and plead his case to them, essentially begging for his brother to lend him his spare key. But, judging by Cody`s reaction to the last time he had locked himself out of his room and resorted to this method of once again gaining access to his `home away from home`, this probably wasn`t the best idea. Then again, last time it had been 2 in morning instead of 11:30 and he had had a few to many shots of tequila that Frankie Anderson had stolen from Senor Frogs, the popular Mexican bar/club that Mr. Tipton had bought the rights to and built on Fiesta Deck of the S.S Tipton. To say that night was crazy would be an understatement and it was one Zack did not wish to repeat. Up until that night he had always assumed that Cody refrained from using foul language - thought himself above resorting to cussing people out. Boy had he been wrong. Apparently all it took was a wake up call from his drunk brother to awaken the beast from within Cody Martin. And although Zack was almost 100% sure that this time Cody wasn't going to call him a " fucking moron" or tell him he was " dumber then a pile of shit", the idea of waking up his brother and then having to deal with his pissy mood was not one he wished to pursue.

3) If he could somehow make it past Kirby and his trusty sidekick, he could go and knock on Moseby's door and ask him to use the master key. But just the thought of doing this made Zack shudder. While he was sure that Moseby would eventually comply with his needs - the man was strict and had a wild imagination in terms of coming up with punishments for whatever wrongdoings the _hooligans _aboard this ship could come up with, but he wasn't heartless- Zack knew that the older man would make him pay for disturbing his sleep and wandering around the ship at night. And he would much rather take his chances with a grouchy brother or pissed heiress.

And so after carefully thinking over and rejecting options 1, 2 and 3 he concluded that there was only one logical solution to his predicament .

4) Climb up onto the railing of the ship and attempt to gain access to his room through the porthole, which thankfully he had decided to prop open to allow some fresh air into his room before he had left to meet London on the Sky Deck. And it did appear to be a rather clam night, so it probably wouldn't be overly difficult…..who was he kidding? It was virtually impossible. But then again, when had he ever let the fact that something was deemed impossible stop him?

Nodding his head solemnly, he took a moment to clear his mind in order to prepare himself for what he was about to do, before stalking over to the direction of the ship's railing. Gingerly he climbed up and leaned over. Trying very hard not to look at the dark water below he glanced to his right and mentally calculated the distance between the farthest possible part of the railing and the slightly open porthole. It wasn't that far. He could make it ….if he stretched.

Taking a deep breath, he carefully put one leg over the railing, then the other. Grasping tightly on to the railing he turned so that his back was facing the water and slowly crept to the farthest point. Instinctively he glanced behind him and then instantly wished that he hadn't. It hadn't seemed like such a long drop to the water when he had come up with this plan. _Shit! _He turned back to the ship and took a few relaxing breaths. This was _not _looking like such a good idea anymore. _Facing Moesby is almost better then this. Why must I always act before I think? You're such a -_

He mental chastising was cut short by the sound of footsteps heading in the direction of the boy's cabin. " Damn it!" Zack muttered under his breath. _Oh this was just great! You risk falling overboard to avoid getting caught out after hours, just to get caught anyways. _As quickly as he could - all the while making sure he didn't make a wrong step which would cause him to most likely plummet to his death - he climbed back onto the ship and dove for cover behind a large potted plant just as the person coming in his direction turned the corner.

Peeking out from behind the plant, a genuinely bewildered look appeared on his face when he saw who was standing a mere 2 feet on front of him, holding two shopping bags, one in each arm. " Cody?" He couldn't help but verbally express his shock.

At the sound of his name being called Cody spun around, almost dropping his bags. " Zack? Zack, where are you?"

Zack climbed out from behind the plant an amused smirk dawning his face. Maybe his little brother wasn't such a goody two-shoes after all. " Right here buddy."

Cody glanced at his brother, then the plant and then back at his brother. " What? Why? " He shook his head. " You know what I don't to know."

Zack lightly slapped his brother on the back and smiled. " You just don't want to be held accountable. You know, little brother, I like the way your mind works sometimes. But only sometimes. Other times it's just down right scary."

Cody just rolled his eyes.

" But you know what?" Zack continued. " I'm going to tell you what I was doing anyways. Because you're my brother, and I love you." He gave his brother a big side hug.

" Okay, what do you this time?" Cody asked as he placed his bags on the ground.

' I may have accidentally misplaced the key my room."

" And you thought you dropped them behind the plant?" Cody asked, rather confused as to what the big deal was.

Zack shook his head. " Oh, no, no. Although now that you mention it, I should take a look there . No, I hide because I thought you were Kirby or that dweeb Ernst. Actually, before you showed up I was attempting to gain access to my humble abode through the porthole."

" You were what?"

" Trying to climb through the porthole from the outside?" Zack repeated, shrugging his shoulders sheepishly.

Giving his brother a stern look Cody walked over to the railing and glanced at porthole. Turning back, he shook his head disapprovingly . " Well, it's a good thing I came along when I did then , isn't it?"

" What? Why?"

" Uh…because there is no way you would have made it."

Zack let out a snort. " Yeah? What makes you think that?"

" Because the distance between the left wall of your room and the porthole is at least 6 and a half feet. And in case you've forgotten we aren't exactly the tallest guys on the planet."

" Oh…I knew that."

Once again Cody shook his head as he walked back into the hallway and picked up his bags from the floor.

Curiosity got the better of Zack and he grabbed the bags from the his brother's hand and began to sort through them. Whatever was in them had to have been vitally important. Besides sneaking out to spend time with Bailey - which he obviously didn't just do- there wasn't very many things that lead to Cody breaking curfew. Zack couldn't help but feel dumbfounded at the contents of the bags. " Gluten free cookies? Seriously Cody? _You - _emphasis on the you part - risked getting a detention for a box of crappy cookies, a bag of peanuts, a bunch of bananas and two sodas? I have better snacks then that hidden in my underwear drawer!"

Cody scrunched his face at the thought of most likely rotting food and dirty laundry in the same drawer . " That's not to something to brag about. Besides, I couldn't sleep. So I decided to get a late night snack."

" And you decided to go on this excursion without me?"

Cody shrugged his shoulders " I knocked on your door, but obviously you weren't there."

Zack gave his brother back his bags and clicked his fingers. " That's right. I was…" he paused, not sure he wanted to tell his brother the truth. That the reason he was so late was because he was in a fight with London. " …busy"

Cody raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything. Zack just shrugged his shoulders, letting his brother come up with his own interpretations of what " I was busy" meant.

There was a moment a silence before Cody dug into one of his bags and pulled out the two sodas - one grape and one orange- and handed the orange on to his brother. " Uh, seeing as we're both up anyways, care to join me?"

Excepting the drink, Zack nodded his head. " Sure, why not?" Much to his surprise Cody took a seat on the floor besides his door, placing his bags in front of him. " Uh, why aren't we going into your room?"

Cody's answer was short, but to the point. " Mexican Buffet." He popped the top off his drink and took a sip.

Zack just nodded and he joined his brother on the floor and took a sip of his drink. Almost instinctively they switched drinks, taking a sip before handing them back.

Zack shook his head in mild amusement at the transaction. " You bought orange and grape on purpose didn't you? You were going to wake me and ask me to join you, weren't you?"

Cody shrugged his shoulders and took another sip. Zack followed suit, and once again they switched drinks. " Maybe." There was a pause. " That's really stupid, isn't it? I mean we haven't shared drinks since….since before we moved to the Tipton, if I'm not mistaken."

Zack returned his brother's shrug. " You know this used to piss mom right off." He let out a small chuckle. " She just couldn't figure out we always got one orange and one grape soda and switched after every sip. She thought we were crazy."

An apprehensive look formed on Cody's face as he thought that over. ' Yeah, yeah. To tell you the truth, I don't even understand why we did that. I mean, if you think about, we're just sharing spit." He involuntarily shuddered.

Zack glanced his brother over quizzically . Upon realizing that Cody was dead serious he burst into laugher.

" What are you laughing at?" Clearly, Cody didn't find anything amusing in what he had just said.

" You. You get all squeamish at the thought of sharing a little spit, and yet you don't seem to mind French kissing."

" That's different."

Zack let out a snort " Yeah, you don't have the same DNA as Ba- the chick whose tonsils you're trying wrap your tongue around." Quickly, Zack gave his brother a nervous glance, hoping he didn't notice his slip up. He wasn't exactly sure where his brother and ex currently stood, and he wasn't really in the mood to bring up any angst-ridden experiences.

But if Cody noticed his brother's slip up, he didn't show it. He seemed to be to preoccupied with the thought of actually exchanging body fluids with another person. When he was engaged in such activates, he -obviously - had other things on his mind. But now, when he actually thought about it, the idea made him cringe. " You know you just ruined making-out for me, right? Thanks for that Zack. "

Zack couldn't help but once again laugh. His brother's borderline OCD tendencies always seemed to be rather amusing. Although, he supposed, they probably weren't that funny to Cody. Perhaps, he shouldn't be to quick to poke fun of him. Suddenly at a loss of what to say he took another sip of his drink.

There was a moment of silence as Cody also took a sip of his drink. And then, " Bailey and I almost had sex today."

" Holy shit in a bucket!" Zack whipped his head around, in the process almost dropping his drink. _Whoa. Where the fuck did that come from? _As he turned his head his eye caught sight of the bunch of bananas that were half sticking out of one of the bags in front of them and the soda in his brother's hand. And it suddenly hit him. He should have known a big heart to heart was coming. The orange and grapes sodas, the bananas, it all made sense now. _You wanted to remind of those key moments in our lives. Back when we shared everything, including spit. And of course, who could forget Mr. Blanket's " beat the banana" therapy. Oh Cody, you don't need to remind me of those moments. I won't ever forget them. _Zack cleared his throat at Cody's look. Obviously that was not the reaction he had been expected. " Uh, the obvious question here would be why?" He got that his brother wanted to talk. But still, almost hooking up with one's ex was not usually a smart thing to do.

Cody put down his drink and let out a frustrated groan. " That's the problem, Zack . I don't know. I mean one moment we're yelling at each other and then next we can't get close enough. If Addison hadn't knocked on the door asking for help with Chemistry, there's no doubt in my mind that we would have done it. " He ran his hands through his hair. " It's just…it's frustrating is what it is. That girl annoys the hell out of me, and yet I can't get enough of her." He paused as he tried to think of what else he might say to convey what he felt. " I don't know, there must be some reason why I feel the way I do." He let out a snort as a stupid inside joke between him and Chris- the guy who sat beside him in psychology class- popped into his head . " I bet it's Freudian."

Automatically Zack sat up a little straighter." Whoa, whoa, calm down there buddy. Hold the phone. Are you telling me that the reason you almost did it with Bailey is because you have Penis Envy?" _That was Freud's thing. Right?_

" No!" Cody narrowed his eyes, almost not believing what his brother had just said. First off, who asks that kind of question? Second, the Freudian reference hadn't even been meant for him. And third, that didn't even make any sense. " What? Zack…I have a…I'm a….do you even know what you are talking about?"

" Well, no," he admitted with a shrug, " I just think it's kind of funny. I mean, what are you, like, jealous of your _genitalia _?" He screwed up is face and dawned an animated voice. " Oh, little Zackary, I am so jealous because all the girls are just using me to get to you."

Cody stared at his_ older _brother is disbelief. He was having a serious crisis, and here Zack was making a mockery out of it. " We are not having this conversation." Grabbing both the sodas he got up from the floor and began to dig in his pockets for his key. " This was a mistake. I shouldn't have told you."

Zack pushed himself off the floor. " Cody don't leave." He let out a sigh as Cody ignore him. " Look, if you want to be serious, I can be serious, okay."

When his brother didn't respond, Zack let out a groan. _Why must I always open my stupid fat mouth? _Noticing the shopping bags still on the floor, he suddenly got an idea. Reaching for the bunch of bananas, he ripped one off and held it out for his brother to grab. " Here, have a banana."

Cody paused from half way through turning the key in the lock and turned to stare at his brother. There was a pause as every implication of what that gesture meant flooded through him. " I can't believe you got that," he said after a moment, causing his brother to chuckle.

" Of course I remembered. I got to beat you with a pillow while you were dressed like a giant banana. Definitely the highly of my year." He handed his brother the fruit and then patted him on the arm. his face becoming serious. " You're my baby brother Codes. I may not know much about mending a serious relationship and I apparently don't know what penis envy means, but that doesn't mean that I don't care about you or your feelings. And sure, sometimes I feel overshadowed by you are you genius ways and other times I want to throw you overboard, but I still love you."

Cody gave him a small smile and then pulled him into a hug. " Yeah, sometimes you annoy the hell out me too. But that doesn't mean I don't love you. I don't know what I would do without you."

Zack let go of his brother as a thought suddenly hit him. " You love Bailey don't you?"

A confused look formed on Cody's face as he thought about his brother had just said. _Is he right? Do I feel like this because I love her? Like, really love her. _

Zack nodded his head slowly, almost as if he could hear his brother's thought . It all made sense now. Sure, he always thought Cody " loved" Bailey. But kind of same way he himself loved the Red Sox , deep dish pizza or " Zombie Slayer 4". But this, this was different. And he couldn't believed that neither of them had realized it until now. Cody did love Bailey. But he loved her the same way he loved his brother. And no matter what happened, he needed them both.

* * *

**I love the last scene of this chapter. It was so much fun to write, and in my opinion it has just the right amount of brotherly-banter combined with just the right amount of brotherly-love. Also I must give credit where credit is due. So thank you to my sister for reminding me of when were younger and we used to swap ice cream after every lick. And thanks to my brother who one day randomly asked me if penis envy meant he was jealous of his own penis ! * smiles* And the line " shit in bucket" is a Heidi Coulter original. Well, at least I think it is. I don't really know anyone else that says that expect me. It's become like my catch phrase. So you may see it pop up every once in a while. **

**Oh, one more thing. I read this review in the " Wheel of Time" fandom the other day and just had to share it will ya'll. It's probably one of the most insightful reviews I have ever read. **

"**Lots of people start stories prefaced with "if it gets a positive review, I'll continue writing it." In my opinion, this mentality is not compatible with writing. If you start and stop writing when nobody says anything, you never give the story a chance to grow into something. Since skill is about practice and experience, if you start and stop without going anywhere, you never gain any skill. In my experience, if you are a fan-writer, the least fulfilling experience is writing in hopes of a review. It has worked better for me writing because I wanted to write rather than because I was hoping someone would tell me to keep going with it. Every time I've flirted with that mind-set, I've been tempted to stop writing. If someone tells you to keep going, all the better, but keep in mind that the aim is to start with no one reading your work and build it such that eventually people want you to keep going. To do that, you must be self-motivated and have the will to write in absence of an audience. An audience usually doesn't happen right away, and your reliability at writing is part of the reason people will come back to continue reading what you write later.****If this is your first try at a fanfic, my advice is this: don't stop. Write what you want to write, but keep writing. Listen to advice, but don't follow it blindly. If someone's advice makes you want to stop writing, it isn't good advice. Harden yourself to continue writing regardless of what anyone says and write what makes you happy. People who like how you do things will seek you out as you work."**


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